


All your Dreams are on their Way

by Lapal



Category: Holby City
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-25
Updated: 2018-09-02
Packaged: 2019-07-02 07:32:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 27,311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15791931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lapal/pseuds/Lapal
Summary: This is set in the months following the second episode of Primum Non Nocere, and is my take on how they are dealing with their continued separation. I initially started this to post to the Holby Scrub In, but took my eye off the ball and didn't complete it in time to send to them. I thank them very much for the prompt Happiness, which is what I used to develop the story.This first chapter is an M rating, but I'm pretty sure the next two will have to be rated E.It has very little plot, just increasing amounts of smut...





	1. When tears are in your eyes, I'll dry them all

**Author's Note:**

> This is set in Nairobi on the occasion of Bernie's birthday, which finds her in a very reflective mood. I have taken liberties with the timeline as well, but only in a minor way.
> 
> The title and chapter headings are from the lyrics of Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon and Garfunkel.

All your Dreams are on their Way

 

 

Chapter One

 

When tears are in your eyes, I’ll dry them all..

 

 

Major Berenice Griselda Wolfe was musing on the amount of days in the calendar that were prefixed by the word ‘happy’ when given in greeting. There was Christmas (although many would argue the correct word here should be Merry), New Year, Easter, Anniversaries, and of course … birthdays. Because, let’s face it, that’s what most people want to wish you, happiness. Serena had said to her after Elinor died, that she had realised too late that success should not be measured by your status in the world, but by whether you were happy or not. And it had taken Serena a long time before she considered herself capable of being happy more than she was sad.

But, on the occasions when people strive to be happy, these were often the days that Bernie struggled with the expectation to really enjoy herself. She could never understand why people decided to get engaged or married on any ‘special’ day, because if things didn’t work out, how could you ever get back to being anything other than miserable when that day rolled around? She started to wonder if there were special days in the Kenyan calendar, other than the Christian and Muslim festivals that she knew of and thought that she should ask her colleagues at the Trauma Centre. She found it was too soon to call them friends, though there were a handful whom she felt would soon fall into that category, and, to that end she had invited a range of people from the hospital over this evening, on the occasion of her birthday.

 

‘ _Well, it was Serena’s idea really,’_ she thought. ‘ _It’s_ _one of the many things she’s good at …. turning a team into a family.’_

 

And it had surprised her, how quickly they had got behind the idea. They knew she was missing her family and friends, no matter how exhilarating it was to work on a project again, one so close to her heart. In truth, she hadn’t felt so good about her professional life since Serena had left her in Holby to take her sabbatical, and she had definitely needed this, to feel like she was needed, and making a difference.

But, as Serena had told her when she had returned to Holby briefly, three months ago, she needed to start letting the people she now worked with into her life, especially as Serena was not in a position to drop everything and join her immediately.

So once she had explained the occasion, her new co-lead, Jean-Luc, and one of the local registrars, Gabriel, had taken over the whole evening, sorting out the food, drink, music and now, she had recently learnt, even some entertainment.

 

And it was the entertainment that was the big problem, and why she was fixating on the most trivial and random thoughts to help her through, (she looked at her watch) at least the next hour or two. Because here, in her apartment, her home in Nairobi was.. a stripper. And though Bernie hadn’t gone around advertising her sexuality, they had listened when she’d talked about the woman she had planned to be there as her co-lead, the very same lady whose picture was the screen saver on her phone and lap-top. So they jumped to their own (and very accurate) conclusions and booked a female stripper.

 

It was then Bernie found out that her British reserve was as strong as ever, when she realised she couldn’t explain she really didn’t want this, that she couldn’t hurt their feelings. No, another stalwart British trait would have to come into play instead…. the ‘stiff upper lip’.

 

Because the only person she wants to strip for her is Serena, and that won’t be happening because she’s still over 6,000 kilometres away in Holby. Bernie knew she’d worked a lot of overtime to justify asking for some time off to be with her; and then just 4 days ago she’d started to cry when she’d had to tell Bernie she wasn’t coming after all. Both Jason and Guinevere (Serena called her Ginny, much to Jason’s annoyance) had caught chicken pox, and Greta was beside herself with worry and exhaustion, and needed a lot of support. Serena invited all three to stay at her house, so that she could be on hand to help whichever of them needed her care and attention the most.

So, once again it was the familiar feeling that her birthday was not going to be a good experience. In fact, she was trying very hard to remember the last time she did have a happy birthday.

 

Too often, when she was in the RAMC, her birthdays had been away from her family, and on foreign soil, mainly in Afghanistan. If she had any choice at all about when she could take her leave, she would always move heaven and earth to be home for Cameron and Charlotte’s birthdays, right up until they were 16. Inevitably that meant that her own were often spent in the mess tent with ‘the boys’, or even in the operating theatre. She always made sure to fit in at least a 5 minute call to her family, so that Marcus, Cameron and Charlotte could sing Happy Birthday to her. If she managed to save a persons life on that day, then yes, there was a measure of happiness present, but that was her job after all. And any euphoria soon faded if she ended up losing another battle for life, later.

 

There had been one birthday, she thought fondly, when Alex had tried to make it a special occasion, joining her in her quarters clutching a bottle of her favourite single malt. The sex that had followed had certainly lifted her spirits for a while, but once Alex was gone (and she could never stay for long) the guilt would descend, making those ecstatic moments so much less than they were.

It was that continued guilt, because of the hurt she had caused her family, that had robbed her and Alex of any true chance of happiness, even after the divorce. A small smile played across her lips….. well that, and also the fact that by then she had met Serena, and they were fast becoming friends. There had been an ease and comfort in having a friend of her own age, who, despite their differences, accepted her lifestyle choices, and who was willing to overlook past transgressions and move on. It still made her toes curl when she thought of those early days of their burgeoning friendship, the looks, the smiles, the gnawing realisation that her feelings for Serena were growing deeper than they ought to be, and the fear that she might lose her altogether if she gave in to them.

 

She thought about all the angst she’d put them both through as she’d tried to control that attraction, by convincing Serena to put feelings aside and confine their teamwork to the operating theatre. To ‘say no more about it.’ Closely followed by the whole running off to Kiev episode. It didn’t seem fair that they had yet to celebrate a birthday _together_. Elinor’s tragic death had meant neither of them could find much of anything last year to feel good about. Cameron and Charlotte had wanted to take their mother out, make a fuss of her.. but she couldn’t, not when she was watching her best friend, her partner of so few months, fall apart.

And although life had taken a turn for the better for both of them recently, here she was one year on, trying to look happy for people she barely knew, who were being so kind to her and so generous with their time, that she hated feeling as if all she wanted was to be surrounded by family and a few old friends who really knew her, sometimes better than she knew herself.

 

‘ _Why not be honest….. just one person would be more than enough, as long as her name was Serena Campbell.’_

 

She sighed deeply, and instantly regretted it, as some anxious eyes turned in her direction. She quickly raised her glass and smiled, to show her appreciation of their efforts this evening.

She looked around the room, and saw that the woman who would be stripping for her was currently chatting to Gabriel, looking far more relaxed than Bernie would ever be about this evening. She had to admit that she found it very odd, the only comparable situation she knew of in the UK was the stripogram, an unknown individual who turned up on your doorstep at some point during a celebration, whose sole purpose seemed to be to embarrass the victim. This set up seemed so different with the woman in question appearing to be on friendly terms with most of her guests, and she wondered if it was typical of the way these things were arranged in Kenya.

 

‘ _This isn’t helping,’_ she thought. ‘ _Find something else to focus on..’_

 

She mentally shook herself, trying to think of happy, nice thoughts to occupy her mind. And the happiest of those nearly always involved Serena.

 

When she had flown back to the UK, to Holby, to finalise the sale of her house, to arrange for the contents of it to go into storage, and of course to get Serena back on board for the position of co-lead of the trauma unit here, she had already harboured doubts that it would happen.

Her stomach clenched as she recalled how, as the day unfolded, Serena’s loyalty – and love – became split right down the middle.

 

‘ _Well done Berenice, not exactly the most pleasant memory to use to distract you.’_

 

That Serena loved her, she’d never doubted, not after all they’d been through. But the pain and anguish she’d seen in that beautiful face when she’d kept pushing to get her to commit to Nairobi, had knocked against her very heart. And she had known her own face was showing the same conflicting emotions, unable to stop the tears as her life felt like it was falling apart. She tried to remember when it had happened, this inability to mask her feelings where Serena was involved.

 

‘ _Probably from the first moment you knew you loved her….’_

 

Previously she’d always been able to project a blank face to the world by withdrawing into her shell, blocking any negative thoughts. An ability she’d developed very early on in her army career as a way of protecting herself from the misogyny she had encountered, and later, from the horrors she had seen. It had also been useful as a way to protect her children, hiding the pain she felt every time she said goodbye so that they wouldn’t be more upset by her leaving…. again. But Serena had crept, inch by inch under those defences until she’d succeeded in cracking them wide open, and now, where she was concerned, every scrap of love, pain, happiness and sorrow was etched onto her face for all to see.

 

For Serena it seemed as if the opposite had happened after Elinor died. Where once her joy and anger and concern would have been easily recognisable, she now rarely let her emotions bubble to the surface, scared that she wouldn’t be able to control them. It certainly made her more peaceful to be around but Bernie missed the fire that would blaze across her face when she felt passionately about something, or someone. She now had to rely on the words spoken rather than the tone they were spoken in, to fully understand what was going on in Serena’s head, and she was only too aware she didn’t always get it right. And on that day when she’d turned up without warning, they had both nearly got it so, so wrong. It still spooked her, how close they had come to walking away from each other.

 

It had hurt, the realisation that she couldn’t, well wouldn’t, expect Serena to choose her over the one last member of her family, especially once Guinevere Elinor had put in an early appearance. She recalled with a shudder how, with feet feeling like lead, and with her heart breaking, she had decided to walk away from the ward and the hospital, even waiting to meet the new arrival, wanting to spare Serena as much hurt as possible. She would leave England as soon as she’d seen her solicitor the following day, and try to do what she always did, find a way through the mess to a place where she could regroup and move on.

But Serena had found her first (when Donna and Fleur, of all people, had pointed out the futility of trying to ignore her love for her) before she had even left the hospital, and had begged her not to give up on their relationship. There, right in the entrance to Wyvern Wing, in full view of all and sundry, they had kissed and kissed and professed their love for each other. And to wait for each other, ‘for eternity’. She gave a small smile at the memory of Serena’s face when she’d teased her by saying ‘no’ when asked if she’d wait. An even bigger smile spread across her face as she remembered how Serena had teased _her_ , when they’d finally got back home.

 

But since then those months leading to today already seemed like an eternity. A long time not to ‘be’ with the person you loved more than you loved yourself. They did speak to one another a lot more than when Serena had first answered Hanssen’s cry for help. They texted, phoned and had designated times over a week when they would move heaven and earth to Skype with each other. To talk, to stare longingly, and at other times to….. well, suffice it to say that they reminded themselves of the heady 48 hours she had had with Serena before coming back to Nairobi. Memories they occasionally revisited, via their laptops, that still made Bernie blush when she thought of them.

 

‘ _Now this was better….… very happy thoughts’_

 

She couldn’t help that she had vague concerns that some very intimate moments were being broadcast across thousands of miles of ‘ether’ or ‘cyberspace’ or whatever people called it. She could use the new technology but had no great understanding of it. She always had this underlying fear that others could be spying on their ‘pleasurable’ conversations.

And when it had become evident that Serena couldn’t be in here today, they had already arranged to Skype this evening when, in spite of her continuing reservations, Bernie was hoping for a fairly steamy exchange.

 

Then it hit her like a sledgehammer! Nairobi was around 2 hours ahead of the UK, so they always scheduled their calls for about 10.00pm for her, around 8.00pm for Holby, so that they would both (hopefully) be home from work and had time to eat. A time before Bernie was too tired to engage in a conversation, or, in the case of this evening, too drunk to. Which meant that it would be very likely that Serena would be expecting her to answer around the the time that Bernie would be possibly be getting a lap-dance. She startled a couple of people by jumping to her feet and rushing into the bedroom. She made sure her laptop was completely switched off, thinking that she could blame the festivities for having ‘forgotten’ the time, and sent off a hasty text to Serena.

 

**Hi my love, just a quick message to tell you that things are going pretty well here. Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves, but the music is a little noisy if I’m honest, and I may have already drunk a little more than is wise. If I miss your call, I promise I’ll call back as soon as I can. Love you so much. x x x x**

 

She felt a little guilty about lying to her, something she knew Serena hated but she hoped that it might stop Serena panicking when she didn’t answer her call, and she could explain and make her apology at a later time. As she came out of the bedroom, another colleague called her over to give her a hug and a small present, so she popped her phone down on the table, as she walked over to open it and devote some time to chat with them.

 

After playing the good host and clutching her third, or was it fourth whiskey, she found another quiet corner to resume her musings, and her mind went back to the start of their physical relationship, after Kiev. She had been reticent about becoming intimate with Serena too quickly, not wanting to scare her away by showing how much she desired her, so was surprised to find that Serena was more open and relaxed about this aspect of their relationship than Bernie would have thought. And the sex, well, let’s just say she had embraced it and Bernie, as if she had been sleeping with women for most of her life.

It was just one of the things about Serena that she loved. After some initial shyness she was very vocal about what she liked in bed and how much she liked it, encouraging Bernie to be the same. It had taken a lot of work on Serena’s part to get Bernie to express herself in that way.

 

Bernie’s relationship with Marcus had been quite good for the most part although she had never felt comfortable about making love anywhere other than the bedroom, especially after having had children, always keeping one ear open for the patter of tiny feet along a landing. Of course it was now understandable that the unease she had felt was not just about being found in an embarrassing position. In latter years she found it easier to hide her lack of enthusiasm or enjoyment in the act if they were in bed, where she could be fairly certain he would soon fall asleep without realising that she hadn’t found the same level of release. So spontaneity had never been a feature of their sex life.

 

With Alex, well there had been no question that her body responded in ways she had previously only dreamed of, but although it had passionate, it had also been very furtive and…… discreet, and definitely quiet. There had been the occasional fumble in her office, hidden from view by a filing cabinet, and even once a very risky encounter in the locker room whilst changing out of scrubs, but mostly it was a brief rendezvous that took place in her quarters, when and if Alex could sneak in undetected.

Not the most relaxing of relationships, but very heady in what was a chaotic environment, and the illicit feeling of it did add a little ‘frisson’ to the experience, however guilt-ridden she felt afterwards.

 

But with Serena? It was the difference between chalk and cheese. The hesitant beginning to their relationship, their growing rapport, had been largely because she had been so conscious of walking a very thin line between work colleague and friend. She’d felt an attraction from the very start, but had had no problem in burying it for many months, after all it was how she had lived her life…. hidden. Serena however, apart from worrying momentarily about the ‘rumour mill’ was no shrinking violet when it came to showing her love. She had proved, as Bernie had suspected, to be far more experienced and enthusiastic about sex than she was. And any gaps in her sapphic knowledge she was more than happy to learn about via that very useful internet tool called ‘Google’.

Yes, there had been nerves on both sides initially, but Serena had made no effort to disguise how much she had enjoyed their fumblings as they got to know each other’s bodies. Her own quiet appreciation had worried Serena at first, but she’d learnt from other signs just how much Bernie was enjoying their sexual encounters and gradually she had coaxed a lot more vocal reactions out of her. Bernie blushed, feeling the stirrings in the pit of her stomach and between her legs that always accompanied prolonged thoughts of Serena.

Another colleague, Azizi, tapped Bernie on the shoulder, making her jump.

 

“Your presence is required over here,” she said with a beaming smile, “ it’s time for some birthday fun.”

 

Bernie downed all the whiskey left in her glass, and allowed herself to be led to a chair that had been placed in the middle of her lounge. She looked around and forced a smile onto her face.

 

“Anyone want to arm-wrestle me to win this seat? I have been beaten….. once. I’m ready if anyone thinks they’re strong enough!”

 

There was some good natured jostling as one or two of the younger members of the team looked as if they would like to try, but they were pulled back and Bernie had no alternative but to sit down. She could do this, she promised herself. She had learnt how to handle the sexual innuendos that went hand in hand with being a woman in the man’s world of the army, and she’d developed a fairly thick skin, always ready to give as good as she got. But back then there was the belief that she was heterosexual (husband and two children) meaning that most of the ribbing she got involved the male torso and physique, and she found those very easy to rise above, rarely feeling any embarrassment.

But the woman in front of her now, (and she was a woman, thank god, not a girl young enough to be her daughter) had what appeared to be a very curvaceous figure, ample breasted, and with strong thighs that only served to remind her of Serena.

 

‘ _Fuck! Had she ever shown any of her team a full length picture of her? Because they couldn’t have got it this right by chance, surely?’_

 

She plastered another good natured grin on her face, still trying to understand why she wasn’t getting more indignant about this. She knew that if she were back in the UK she would not have allowed this to go any further, would have stopped it before it began. One thing was for certain, in the next few days she would be speaking to the senior members of her team to let them know that nothing like this would be happening again.

 

‘ _Another few minutes and this will be over, just don’t lose your rag now, you can do this.’_

 

She wondered if she’d tell Serena, or rather, _when_ she’d tell her. She was only too clear on Serena’s opinion of liars, even if only by omission. She certainly would wait until they were face to face, via her computer, but couldn’t quite decide if Serena would find the whole thing funny (probably), or be really pissed about it (possible). She hadn’t felt this stressed in quite a while, and the tension ratcheted up a few notches when the woman pressed play on an iPod, and Bernie heard the song that brought back some very erotic, intimate memories of the evening after she had promised Serena to wait ‘for however long it takes’.

 

She’d cancelled her hotel reservation and they had gone back to Serena’s house, bringing back mixed feelings for both of them. The last time they had both walked through that door had been right after Serena’s confession on the rooftop, that she needed to take some time away, from Jason, from the hospital and ultimately from her. They had entered the house very separate human beings, both hurting in very different ways, and Bernie hadn’t stayed long, not wanting to break down in front of an already broken Serena.

 

But, the same place a little over a year later, and there had been a very different expectation, and the sexual tension had been tangible. Bernie had half expected that Serena would slam the door shut and press her against it, kissing her voraciously, her hands roaming up and down her body…… but she didn’t do that. What she did, in Bernie’s opinion, was far more erotic. Firstly she had taken Bernie’s coat and hung it up alongside her own. She then told Bernie to carry on upstairs and have a shower if she wanted, saying she didn’t mind what she put on to come back down, and in the meantime she would rustle up something for them to eat. Whilst in the shower Bernie kept thinking that Serena would appear at any moment to join her, and the anticipation of that had nearly sent her over the edge. But Serena did not make an appearance, so Bernie had donned a t-shirt and sleep shorts, and when she walked into the kitchen had been rewarded by a sharp intake of breath from Serena as her eyes travelled up and down her body, taking in those lovely lithe limbs and her top clinging slightly to the still moist contours of her body. She had nodded her approval and Bernie had enjoyed seeing the glint in her eyes.

 

She no longer remembered what they had eaten, but she would never forget the look of love in Serena’s eyes as she kissed her, before taking her hand to lead her back to their bedroom.

Once there she had placed Bernie onto the stool in front of her dressing table, and asked her not to move, whilst she took out her phone and scrolled through some songs, before making her selection. She had stood in front of Bernie and tenderly stroked her face, had run her fingers through her hair, telling her that whenever she was missing her (which was often), this song was the one that grounded her, that reminded her how Bernie cared for her, even when apart.

She’d pressed play and as the music filled the room Serena had started to sway in time to the music, while slowly removing her clothes and Bernie had thought she had never seen anything so sexy in her life.

 

Which made the sight of the woman _now_ in front of her and the same song that was playing so difficult to cope with. Bernie had to bite hard on her lip, tasting blood, as she tried to stop herself from crying. She knew there were words coming up that she _couldn’t_ listen to without weeping, ever since Serena had sung them to her, and she twisted her head up looking anywhere but at the woman in her home (who had yet to remove any item of clothing) and knew that in a moment she would have to get up, and push everyone out of the apartment, so that she could let forth the floodgates on yet another failed birthday.

 

When Serena had played this for her back in Holby, it was at the end of an intensely emotional day for both of them, and as she moved, Serena had sung along to Faith Hill’s voice…

 

‘ _Well you showed me how it feels_

_To feel the sky within my reach_

_And I always will remember all the strength you gave to me_

_Your love made me make it through_

_Oh I owe so much to you_

_You were right there for me.’_

 

 

Both of them had tears spilling from their eyes, as Serena acknowledged everything that Bernie had done for her, and what she continued to do, every single day.

 

Suddenly, back in the present, the music stopped and Bernie had never felt so grateful for anything, but was bewildered as she swivelled her head to look at the woman standing in front of her. She had Bernie’s phone in her hand, and was holding it out towards her.

With a shaking hand she took it and put it to her ear.

 

“Bernie, darling… do you trust me?”

 

Upon hearing her partner’s voice she replied instantly, “Always.”

 

“I need you to close your eyes for me and keep them closed until I say, no matter what you hear or feel for the next few minutes. Can you do that?”

 

Bernie’s breathing hitched, and she looked around at the people in her apartment, some of whom she hardly knew, and she felt extremely vulnerable.

 

“Serena? I……. I don’t know… I….”

 

Serena waited for a moment or two to give her the chance to process things and gave an audible sigh of relief when Bernie finally said, “Yes, yes of course.”

 

Serena whispered, “Thank you.”

 

Taking a deep breath and still clutching the phone Bernie closed her eyes tightly.

 

Almost immediately she heard movement in the room and when a hand was gently placed on her shoulder, she nearly leapt out of the chair. Then a male voice (Jean-Luc) said softly, ‘Happy Birthday Bernie” and he gave her shoulder a small squeeze before moving away. This was repeated many more times, not always with a touch, but all of them letting her know she was wished the very best on this special day.

 

Serena spoke again.

 

“Please don’t open your eyes yet but I wanted to let you know I’ve spoken to quite a few of your team over the last couple of weeks, and everyone of them, including those on duty tonight, wanted you to know how much they value and admire you, and how much they enjoy working with you. And of course I’ve reminded them that you’re the greatest trauma surgeon they’re ever likely to see!”

 

Bernie wanted to laugh at that but it came out as a sort of half sob. Serena continued.

 

“I’m in awe of you my darling. You have made such a difference to so many lives, all around the world.”

Bernie brushed away another tear before she spoke.

 

“Not just me. A little bird told me all about a gentleman called Lennie that appeared on AAU just a week ago, who apparently had been so grateful to you for saving his life many years ago, that he named his eldest daughter Serena!”

 

Serena hissed, “Ric!”

 

Bernie did manage a laugh then, before Serena resumed control.

 

“Right, back to the present. Still with your eyes closed I want you to start counting out loud up to 60. Not too fast, just so you can judge when a minute has passed. If I haven’t told you to open your eyes before then, you can do it when you reach 60. Okay?”

 

Bernie murmured, “Yes,” and started counting. She was still aware of things going on around her, but the sound of her voice in her ears was also blocking some peripheral noises. She had just reached 55, when Serena spoke again.

 

“Time to open your eyes Bernie.”

 

She blinked and adjusted her eyes to what now seemed to be an empty apartment. She looked all around but could see no one. Serena spoke again.

 

“Put the music back on please.”

 

Bernie looked at the iPod, still sitting on the small table just in front of her and pressed play, and she sighed deeply as another wave of emotion washed over her forcing her to close her eyes again.

 

‘ _In my dreams I’ll always see you soar above the sky_

_In my heart there’ll always be a place for you_

_For all my life_

 

_I’ll keep a part of you with me_

_And everywhere I am there you’ll be_

_And everywhere I am there you’ll be_

_There you’ll be.’_

 

“Open your eyes, my darling,” Serena whispered.

 

Bernie’s eyes fluttered open and took in the joyous sight of Serena, swaying in time to the music, right in front of her. She shot up like a bullet, pulling Serena into a close embrace, tears spilling down her face. They stayed like that until the music faded away and Serena pushed her gently back down onto the chair, brushing some of the tears from Bernie’s cheeks as she did.

 

“Hey.. I’m sorry that I went a little over the top with my plans to make your birthday a happy one. Didn’t mean to cause you so many tears. Tend to get a _bit_ carried away where you’re concerned..... So, take some deep, deep breaths and focus on me. You were expecting a stripper this evening, and I intend to honour that!”

 

Bernie’s eyes widened, and she suddenly found swallowing to be quite difficult. She watched as Serena stood just out of reach and started to unbutton the front of her summer dress, revealing a simple set of white lacy underwear, a bra that showed off her wonderful cleavage and knickers that hugged her curves. It took a couple of moments for Bernie to realise that both garments were slightly transparent, and she could see the dark curls at the triangle where thighs met body, and she could see the deep pink areola puckering around each nipple, pushing them against the fabric. She made a deep growling noise in her throat and started to stand up ready to pull Serena into another passionate kiss.

Serena moved a step backwards and wagged her finger at Bernie.

 

“Now, now Major, it might be _your_ birthday but _I_ get to say when you get this present. I’ll be doing the unwrapping, so to remove any temptation, maybe you should sit on your hands?”

 

Bernie immediately did as Serena suggested, finding that Serena, in full control was very sexy.

Suddenly it was as if a light bulb went off in her brain.

 

“This whole idea was yours, wasn’t it? The party, the stripper….. you arranged it all. How on earth did you manage it? And how ever did you manage to find a stripper that was so similar to you? Did you plan this from the beginning, before the chicken-pox outbreak?”

 

Serena was grinning as she shook her head in disbelief.

 

“Really Bernie? You are so easy to fool! Just because you would never be so devious, you can’t imagine anyone else being like that, can you? You’re forgetting my excellent management skills, honed to perfection at Harvard. That wasn’t a stripper. When I feared I wasn’t going to be able to be here I simply asked Jean-Luc if he thought he could find someone who was roughly my age and height with a ‘fuller figure’. He was reluctant at first, so please don’t have a go at him for this. I managed to persuade him that it would be okay in the end.”

 

Bernie raised her eyes to the ceiling.

 

“Well, I suppose that I, more than anyone, can understand just how…… persuasive you can be. But he won’t be getting away scot free even so.”

 

“Bernie..” said Serena, a warning tone in her voice. “Really, you need to leave it. He’s a nice man as well as a great surgeon, and you’re lucky to have him on your side.”

 

Bernie sighed.

 

“He’s not _you_ though, is he? He’s always going to have to compete with that, in my head.”

 

Serena walked over to Bernie slipping her dress off her shoulders as she did, and then sat on her lap , her legs straddling Bernie’s so that they were face to face.

 

“I know, and I’m so sorry that I haven’t been strong enough to walk away from Holby, when only 15 months ago I couldn’t wait to leave. I really wish that things could be different, and I promise I’m working hard to put things in place so that I can join you sooner rather than later. But I realised after I told you about Jason and Ginny, that nothing short of a natural disaster was going to keep me from being here today. I need you to remember that I love you… very, very much.”

 

Bernie leant forwards and kissed her, and when they broke apart she nuzzled into Serena’s neck.

 

“I should be so cross with you for putting me through all of this charade this evening, in front of people that I don’t even know that well….. but I can’t be.

I can’t believe that you’re here – in front of me.

I can’t believe that we finally get to celebrate my birthday….together!

And…. I certainly can’t believe that I’m still sitting on my hands when all I want to do….”

 

Serena put her mouth close to Bernie’s ear and said softly,

“What _do_ you want to do Berenice Griselda Wolfe?”

 

Bernie snorted.

“What do you think? I want my best ever present to be unwrapped, ready to play with.”

 

Serena threw back her head and laughed, and pushed herself up off Bernie’s lap and held out her hand for Bernie to take.

 

“In that case Major, I suggest you take me to where your ‘playroom’ is.”

 

Bernie jumped up off the chair and and pulled Serena towards her, and in the same move swept her other arm under her thighs and lifted her up. Serena squealed with delight as she was carried to the bedroom. She was carefully lowered back onto her feet again, Bernie realising that if she had tried to put her onto the bed, the angle and weight may well have caused some damage to her back, and there was no way she was going to risk that tonight. She took a step back to look at the goddess standing in front of her.

 

“Erm, how long are you here for?” she asked.

 

“I have a flight booked for early on Tuesday morning,” Serena replied. “I’m sorry it’s not longer, but I hope it’s enough to show me one or two sights of interest.”

 

Bernie tilted her head and tried raising an eyebrow the way Serena could, but knew it looked nothing like as alluring. How she had resisted launching herself at her all those months ago when Serena had asked for help in doing some _‘empirical research’_ she still wondered at. She blinked hard to bring herself back into the present.

 

“ I think all the best sights of interest are right here in this room,” she said in a low voice as she reached around Serena to unclip her bra, and moaned softly as her breasts tumbled free.

 

Serena moved in to her arms, pressing her body close, her hands behind Bernie’s head as she pulled her into a searching kiss.

 

“I think it’s about time _you_ revealed yourself to _me_ ,” she murmured softly. “I still have a few special treats to give you.”

 

Bernie stood back and started to hastily tug at her jeans as Serena sat down on the bed and watched her, her heart pounding.

Bernie frowned as she started hopping on one leg, and then fell sideways onto the bed next to Serena.

 

“How about a little hand here?” she asked, slightly peevishly.

 

Serena grinned, as she started pulling her other leg free.

 

“No matter how sexy you look in these, they are rubbish when you’re in a hurry, or drunk, or want to be spontaneous, you know. It’s what I was most terrified of the first time I undressed you, I thought by the time I’d got them off, you’d have gone off the whole idea!”

 

Bernie grinned as she finally managed to wriggle free.

 

“As if that’s likely to happen,” she said as she sat astride Serena’s lap. Serena started to unbutton her shirt very slowly as Bernie stroked her fingers down her back, making her shiver with anticipation.

Pushing the shirt off Serena made short work of undoing her bra and gave a deep sigh as Bernie’s breasts were revealed, and then bent her head down to capture a nipple gently between her teeth, lapping at it with her tongue. Bernie moaned with pleasure and Serena pushed her off her lap and told her to get on the bed, which she did, her back against the pillows and her head leaning on the headboard. Moving to stand at the foot of the bed Serena hooked her thumbs into her own knickers and slowly eased them down over her hips, an inch at a time. When they were level with the top of her thighs she turned around and stroked her hands over her backside, pulling at her cheeks slightly before stroking them again. A soft groan from the bed told Serena that Bernie was feeling more than a little excited.

 

“You know what?” said Serena.

 

“What?” replied Bernie a little testily, now very anxious that Serena join her on the bed, while it was still her birthday. She was desperate to explore her best ever present.

 

Serena turned to face her as she pushed her knickers down her thighs and let them fall to the floor.

 

“I’ve often thought that I might enjoy a little light……. spanking. You know, if ever you were wondering, at some future time that you felt I deserved a little ‘extra’ attention.”

The right eyebrow rose suggestively as Serena ran her tongue over her lips.

 

Bernie swallowed noisily, and when she spoke her voice came out low and gravelly.

 

“Serena Wendy Campbell, if you don’t get that bum of yours onto this bed in the next 30 seconds I swear I’ll start without you.”

 

“Now, much as I’d like to see that, let’s save it for when we _can’t_ be together, hmm?”

 

Serena knelt on the bed and started to stroke up and down Bernie’s legs, and then brought her hands to the waistband of her panties and began to roll them down, taking great delight as she saw curly dark hairs start to appear. She bent down to kiss her stomach as one of her hands pushed gently between Bernie’s legs feeling very smug as she found the fabric there to be rather damp.

 

“Lift your hips darling,” she murmured, and she raised them immediately so that Serena could rid her of the last item of clothing. She pushed Bernie’s legs apart and sighed in anticipation and appreciation.

Putting her face between Bernie’s thighs, Serena lay her head against one of them and inhaled deeply, letting the scent of Bernie’s arousal fill her nostrils and her being. She still marvelled at how she could cause such a reaction in her and placing the gentlest of kisses on either side of her labia she moved up the bed, until her head was on the pillow next to Bernie’s with one hand still resting gently on top of the soft curls below, her fingers pulling gently as she teased.

She looked at Bernie, her eyes closed, her breathing rapid and shallow, her breasts rising and falling, a soft pink glow suffusing her face and upper body. She moved her hand upwards to cup first one and then the other breast, and when her fingers found the tip of her nipples, she flicked them, and then pinched and pulled them, knowing how sensitive they were and Bernie arched off the bed and groaned loudly clenching her hands into fists.

 

She turned her head to look at Serena with so much desire in her eyes, not needing words to express how much she loved her, that Serena instantly leant over to press their lips together, softly at first then deeper and deeper, their tongues intertwining as they each sought to gain dominance.

Kissing Bernie was one of Serena’s favourite pastimes, sometimes needing nothing else but to lie with her, brushing their lips together, smooching, for what seemed like hours, almost in a trance. Sometimes it was more animalistic, their mouths ferociously trying to consume the other until they had to pause for breath, their lips bruised and swollen.

 

Bernie pulled her nearly on top of her, and Serena thought she would never tire of the wonderful sensation every time they moved this way, their breasts pressed together, nipples meeting and then dragging away causing her stomach to churn and her sex to flood with desire.

 

“Oh god,” she muttered, “ I’ve missed this, missed _you_.”

 

Bernie merely grunted in reply, so heightened were all her senses that she seemed to have no strength left to form words.

Serena sucked on her earlobe and then placed little kisses all along her jaw line, stopping occasionally to tell Bernie how she was feeling.

 

“I want to give you…(kiss) everything, but this is so exquisite, (kiss) that I don’t want to rush it (kiss)… I don’t want it to stop.”

 

She continued kissing down Bernie’s neck, sometimes nibbling and licking and Bernie started to pant heavily as Serena lightly dragged her fingers down to her stomach, drawing delicate patterns on her skin and then pushing more firmly with the heel of her hand over Bernie’s mound. She felt Bernie’s legs stiffen slightly and then relax, moving slightly further apart as if she was guiding her home. Serena grabbed at the curls more forcibly, Bernie’s hips lifting with each tug, and Serena could hear small whimpers issuing from both of them. When her fingers finally wrapped around and pushed through her folds Serena found Bernie so wet she wondered if she had come already. But as Bernie was showing no signs of wanting Serena to stop, she pushed with a little more force and two skilful fingers slid straight in with ease.

There was a groan that came deep from within Bernie’s chest and her hips raised up every time Serena thrust slowly in and out, and when a third finger gently joined the other two, Bernie’s eyes flew open and she stared at Serena before biting her lip and nodding, finally managing to speak.

 

“I’m nearly.. Oh god, faster.. please?”

 

So Serena kept thrusting, harder and faster, and she could feel Bernie’s walls start to grip her fingers as her orgasm built and built until with a small scream and loud sigh Bernie came, flooding around Serena’s fingers. Serena slowly withdrew but continued to caress her clit as she felt the spasms ripple across her stomach, causing her hips to buck slightly with the aftershocks. Suddenly she felt Bernie’s hand push between her own legs, fingers slipping easily through the slickness to press against her clit. Almost synchronised they continued to pleasure each other until Serena, shuddering, moaning loudly reached her own orgasm, and she felt Bernie too, manage a softer second climax.

 

They both lay, gasping, their hands still resting between their thighs, for the time being sated and replete. After 3 or 4 minutes, when she finally had enough breath to speak, Serena turned onto her side and exhaled.

 

“I think we may need to change the sheet Bernie.”

 

Bernie shook her head, and when she spoke her voice sounded thick and sultry.

 

“I’m not sure if it’s worth doing right now…. I mean, I don’t know about you, but I have no plans to sleep anytime soon.”

 

Serena eyes flew open at that, before smiling fondly at Bernie.

 

“Don’t forget I only got off an 8 hour flight from England about 2 hours ago, my suitcase is still unpacked, in the hall.”

 

She saw a flicker of disappointment on Bernie’s face, although it quickly disappeared as she nodded and gave her a look of complete understanding. Serena kissed her lovingly before she continued speaking.

 

“However, I’m game if you are, although I can’t guarantee I won’t have a little nap in between…”

 

And Serena arched her eyebrow as only she could, and then glanced at the clock on the bedside table.

 

“I’m just in time to ask if you’ve had a Happy Birthday?”

Then she gasped as Bernie’s mouth had already found one of her nipples that she was sucking gently, but she pulled away momentarily to answer.

 

“Oh, yes, yes, yes! The best one for so long…. and you are definitely the best present I’ve _ever_ had.”

 

 

 


	2. Sail on silver girl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Serena's birthday, and her Holby friends want to give her a party... but where will it be held?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little shorter than my usual chapter, but the next one will be longer than normal to make up for it. I know there's a lot of fanfic out there at the moment, but I hope you'll find time for this one too.

Sail on silver girl

 

 

 

 

Serena’s alarm went off at 6.30am, and unusually she was still asleep when it did. Much as she loves being Grauntie S (an amalgamation of Great and Auntie that she feels will be easier for Ginny to remember and eventually say) she was very thankful there had been no call from Jason the previous evening requesting her help.

She lay there for a minute or two luxuriating in the knowledge that that she only had to get herself ready for work, with no nappies to change, and that today was her birthday. She liked birthdays, especially her own. In past years she’d often taken the day off, choosing to spend the day with her family, but this year, the most important person in her life was going to be missing. So being with her friends at work was, she felt, the best way to make the most of the day. She smiled as she remembered her visit to Nairobi just 12 weeks ago. The cost of hiring a qualified nurse and nanny to help Greta had been well worth it. Ginny had not suffered any of the more dangerous complications of chicken pox when caught by an infant, and the minute she had laid eyes (and hands) Bernie, she knew she had made the right decision.

 

That Bernie loved a challenge was a given, and the pressured environment of the Trauma Centre there was something she thrived on, but when they had said their goodbyes…..yet again, she had felt very guilty, knowing how much harder this waiting game was for Bernie. She at least was returning to a place where family and friends were there for her, whereas Bernie was currently facing all the hurdles on her own, however supportive her colleagues appeared to be. Serena had vowed there and then that she would visit as often as she could. She owed her that at the very least.

 

‘ _Don’t try to pretend it’s only for her though… you know there’s nothing you like more than to wake up with that mess of blonde curls on the pillow next to you.’_

 

Serena couldn’t stop the little grin that spread over her face.

 

‘ _Nothing quite like the sex before going to sleep, either’_

 

She pushed herself up and out of bed and went to shower…. Maybe a slightly cooler shower than usual.

 

When she arrived at work she pushed open the office door to find a small pile of cards on her desk. Donna had already given her a birthday hug, along with the theatre list of elective surgeries which started straight away, so that birthday related activities would have to wait.

 

A couple of hours later she sat down at her desk clutching a cup of coffee and a pain au chocolat, courtesy of her friend, Fleur Fanshawe who was sitting opposite her, at what she would always think of as Bernie’s desk. She felt a pang in her heart for a moment, and then shook her head to clear it of negative thoughts. She and Bernie had spoken last night and Bernie had promised to make her birthday night one to remember, so had arranged to Skype with her at around 10pm. She squirmed slightly in her seat imagining how Bernie might be planning to make their chat ‘special’, and as she smiled at the thought a slight flush suffused her cheeks. She was interrupted by a cough from Fleur.

 

“Hello? Earth to Serena? You do have company in your office you know….. and I don’t just mean the woman that’s in your head.”

Serena rolled her eyes as she replied.

“I’m sorry, it’s just hard you know, even more on ‘special’ days… not to be with her.”

 

Fleur reached across the desk and patted her hand.

 

“I understand. But if it wasn’t for your BMAM and her thirteen ways to kill me, I’m sure _I_ could find a way to distract you.”

 

Serena knew she was being teased and smiled affectionately.

 

“Behave!”

 

“A girl can dream,” said Fleur. “But down to business. A few of us here would like to help you celebrate your birthday, so we’ve arranged a small party for you this evening.”

 

Serena hesitated, thinking about her Skype call with Bernie, knowing she didn’t want anything to interfere with that, but very moved that her friends were considering how to make her day as good as it could be. Fleur understood her reluctance, and not wanting her to say no, she tried to put her mind at rest.

 

“Look, I’ll be honest with you for once, and tell you that I’ve already been in touch with Bernie to explain what we want to do. She said to assure you that Jason will go and pick up your iPad in case the party goes on longer than planned. She explained your planned call and I’ve promised her that we’ll give you some privacy. Does that help?”

 

“You’ve spoken to Bernie……. _you_?”

 

“No need to sound so surprised, she asked me to keep an eye on you the day we met, when you became a Great Auntie. It was all part of the deal to stop her showing me one of the many ways she could hurt me, as it appeared I was overstepping the mark.”

 

Serena’s eyes started to water as she realised once again just how much Bernie was still trying to look after her, even from another continent. She looked across to her friend and nodded briefly, not trusting herself to speak. Fleur stood up and walked around the desk to place her hand on Serena’s shoulder as she lightly kissed her cheek.

 

“She loves you very much you know,” she said, giving her shoulder a little squeeze. “Fletch will be here about 6.30 this evening to escort you. I’ll see you then.”

And then she left, needing to get back to her ward and to make sure that everyone involved with the party knew it was going ahead.

 

It turned into fairly busy day with one or two pleasant surprises along the way, the most welcome being a beautiful bouquet of flowers (courtesy of Interflora) from Cameron and Morven, identical to the one she had seen at Bernie’s apartment in Nairobi. She was very touched to read the card saying that they were sorry they hadn’t been able to get to see either of them on their birthdays, but promised it wouldn’t be too long before they paid a visit to the UK to catch up with the family. She was still so grateful of his support for his mother in the early days of their relationship.

 

At 6.00pm her shift finished and she headed off to the locker room to collect her belongings, and to freshen up before the evenings festivities. She wished she had known about the party before leaving home this morning, she could have brought a change of clothes (or at least a change of blouse) with her. Then she suddenly remembered she had taken the dress she had worn at Bernie’s party into work with her when she returned from Nairobi, using it a little like a security blanket, to remind her of that night.

She changed quickly, thankful for the current heat wave that meant going without stockings would not look odd. She gave herself a brief check in the mirror and then closed her eyes, picturing Bernie standing behind her, arms around her waist, her head nuzzled into Serena’s neck, just as she had before Serena left for the airport. That was the most uncomfortable feeling she had when visiting her, having to say their intimate goodbyes behind locked doors. Even though Kenya was slowly moving forward in terms of same sex relationships, there was still a long way to go, and the stigma and possible expulsion (in the case of foreign workers) from the country was certainly something that she didn’t want Bernie to have to face. So she chose to make the journey to and from the airport alone.

 

When she returned to her office she found Fletch waiting for her, and he gathered her into his arms for a big hug.

 

“Hope you don’t mind that Evie and Mikey will be there as well? Evie has missed you recently, and Mikey…… well, we all know Mikey enjoys being the centre of attention…”

 

“I wouldn’t have thought Albie’s would be the sort of place for them, but of course I don’t mind them being there. They’ll brighten us old fogeys up”

 

“Excuse me, don’t get counting me as a fogey, old or not…. and it’s not at Albie’s, it’s here, at the hospital.”

 

Serena was puzzled, but took the arm that Fletch offered as he escorted her to the lifts. She presumed it was being held in one of the conference rooms and her suspicions were confirmed when he pressed the button for the 6th floor. But instead of turning left out of the lift he guided her to the 6 stairs that led to the roof.

She blanched slightly and her step faltered as she realised where they were heading. Fletch stopped as well, and turned to speak to her.

 

“Serena, I know how hard this must be given the circumstances around the last time you were here, but we want you to give you a happier memory to hold onto. I promise if it all gets too much, just let me know and we’ll move everything down to the boardroom, okay?”

 

“We? Exactly who are the ‘we’ who knew about….. last time?”

 

Fletch looked slightly uncomfortable.

 

“Well, me and Ric, Abi, Fleur, Donna, Hanssen of course…….”

 

Serena eyes widened in surprise.

 

“So the gossip still continues does it? Were you the one that divulged my innermost secret to all and sundry?”

 

Fletch looked a little uncomfortable.

 

“No, no, of course not. It was…. well, we wanted to be sure about this so some of us may have checked in with Bernie before we made any arrangements.”

 

“Dear god, is everybody at Holby in touch with Berenice bloody Wolfe?”

 

But smiling as she said her name revealed that Serena was not as upset as she tried to appear.

 

“Well, she still has a presence here, and some, like Donna met her before they met you. You know we’re all very fond of her.”

 

Serena swallowed the lump in her throat and put her hand on the stair rail, her legs feeling a little shaky as she took the first step. She knew she could never erase the memory of how badly she had behaved on the days and weeks leading up to that evening when Bernie, Fletch and Jasmine (oh Jasmine) had burst through the security door to find her sitting in a deckchair, drunk, in the middle of her shift. She knew she would always be ashamed of how many people she had hurt whilst wallowing in the bottomless pit of grief that surrounded Elinor’s death.

She put her hand into Fletch’s, and taking a deep breath they climbed the few stairs together, and when he pushed open the door at the top there was a cheer from the people that were already there. Serena couldn’t believe how they had made such an ugly concrete rooftop look so pretty. There were fairy lights everywhere, and although the sun hadn’t set yet, they were already twinkling in the dusk. Just by where they were standing there were a couple of speakers, and she could hear some quiet jazz issuing from them. There were tables and chairs around with candles waiting to be lit when the sunlight faded completely.

Dom came forward to lead her over the steps of the bridge, to stand next to the large air conditioning unit.

 

“You knew that Bernie used to come up here to clear her head sometimes, when life was crowding in on her. She and I used to meet up fairly regularly, and chat. The day she came back from Kiev we both sat here with demons to face, and just let each other talk, me about Isaac, and Bernie about you. It was the first time I think that she admitted to herself that you were ‘ _very much the one’_.”

 

Serena took a deep breath. She thought Bernie had used the roof mainly to grab a quick smoke when the events of the day had wound her up, so to hear that in the early days she’d had a confidante to share her fears with, made her look at the space up here with fresh eyes. Maybe she _could_ see this area in a whole new light, not just the place where she had nearly lost everything that was dear to her, nearly lost herself. She had never admitted it to Bernie, but there had been a few moments when she _had_ considered what Bernie had feared, ending her pain in the most definitive way. She clutched at Dom as her head swam with that thought. Maybe it was the time to make new memories instead of clinging to the old. One thing she had learnt on her sabbatical was that you couldn’t run or hide from your memories, good _or_ bad, the echoes from them continue to reverberate inside you. So the best thing she’d found when the thoughts of bad times threatened to resurface was to crowd them out, with newer, better memories, and perhaps tonight was her chance to do that.

 

She gave Dom a smile and squeezed his arm in thanks and then moved around, talking to everyone who was there, genuinely moved that so many were wanting to wish her well. And so the evening progressed. Some staff disappeared to relieve others still on duty, some stayed for a drink and then went home to their families. Jason appeared after his shift to give his Auntie a hug, and also a beautifully framed photo of himself, Greta and Guinevere, which she shed a little tear over.

 

“Greta said she’s sorry that she and Guinevere couldn’t come, but she didn’t want to disrupt her routine. But we want you to come to dinner on Sunday, if you’re not working, and we can celebrate together then.”

 

Serena smiled happily.

 

“I would love that,” she said, “give them both a hug from me, and thank you so much for the photo.”

 

She gave him a quick kiss, and told him how much she loved them all. Jason nodded and walked away to talk to Ric before returning to his family, and Serena felt a lump in her throat as she acknowledged how far he had come since he first walked into AAU and into her life. Suddenly she felt an arm sneak around her waist and she was pulled close to the curvy body of Fleur.

 

“Don’t you think I’ve earned a hug and a birthday kiss? You could tell Bernie it was because I’ve been looking after you so well.”

 

Serena turned her head and looked down at Fleur’s rather cherubic face, smiling as she did.

 

“You have been taking _very_ good care of me,” she murmured, and she bent her head to place a gentle kiss on her cheek. But Fleur was having none of that and grabbed Serena’s head with both hands to make sure she could give her a very firm kiss on the lips.

 

“Oh… okay,” said Serena, blushing slightly as she pulled away, and Fleur, smiling broadly, took her hand to lead her over to one of the tables and sat her down. Fletch’s daughter Evie came up clutching a gift in her hand. She stopped short from throwing herself into Serena’s arms (as she would have 12 months ago) and stood there awkwardly holding the present out towards her. Serena took it from her putting it on the table, and held out her arms, inviting Evie to give her a hug.

 

“Come on, I know you’re getting to be quite the young lady now, but I hope you’ll always want a cuddle from me.”

 

Evie grinned shyly and launched herself into Serena’s arms.

 

“Always,” she whispered in her ear.

 

Serena looked past Evie, to see Mikey sauntering over, a trademark grin on his face.

 

“Hope you’re not going to tell me you’re too old for a hug as well?” Serena said, teasingly, as Evie stood back.

 

“Looking good Serena,” he said cheekily, and although he made a small protest he was happily gathered into her arms.

 

Evie had sat in the chair next to Serena seeming anxious.

 

“Dad says he doesn’t think it will be too long before you move to Nairobi to be with Ms Wolfe. Is that true, are you leaving Holby forever?”

 

Serena reached out to grasp one of Evie’s hands before she replied.

 

“Yes, I will be going soon I think. My great niece is getting on well and Jason and Greta are coping… most of the time. And I miss Bernie, and I need her in my life,” she sighed.

“But it won’t be forever, and I shall come back regularly to see Ginny, and my very clever adopted niece,” (squeezing Evie’s hand) “who is growing into such a beautiful young lady.”

 

“I hope I find someone to love as much as you love Bernie,” said Evie shyly.

 

“I’m sure you will,” said Serena softly, “and they will be very lucky to have you.”

 

Donna appeared clutching Serena's iPad, which she put into her hands.

 

“I think there’s someone waiting to speak to you.”

 

Serena gasped, having lost complete track of time, but when she accepted the call, she saw it was only 8.30pm and not the 10pm slot they had agreed on. But she didn’t have time to comment as Bernie’s beautiful face filled her screen, and she felt her heart overflow with love. Everyone moved away from her, to give her some privacy.

 

“Happy Birthday my darling,” said Bernie.

 

Serena gave her a beaming smile, feeling quite giddy with happiness.

 

“Thank you… how are you? Busy I expect.”

 

“Yes,” she replied, “and tired. I’m only just out of theatre, but I couldn’t wait any longer to see you.”

 

“I wish you were here,” said Serena a little tearfully, and then took a deep breath.

 

“I’m sorry… sorry….. I promised myself I wouldn’t say that, I don’t want to upset you.”

 

Bernie smiled softly, looking a little emotional herself.

 

“Hey, it’s fine. I wish I was there too. I’m afraid you’ll just have to make do with the presents I’ve already sent.”

 

“I thought we agreed months ago that we wouldn’t go to the expense of posting presents to one another. You already gave me the best present when you said you’d wait for me.”

 

“Shush!” said Bernie firmly, “what’s done is done. And anyway, you sent yourself as a present for me, so no arguments.”

 

They gazed at each other not saying anything, and Serena couldn’t stop herself reaching out as if to stroke Bernie’s face, trailing her fingers down the screen. The desire she felt for this woman still astounded her. She choked back a sob as Bernie whispered her name.

 

“Serena…. I love you more each day, and I miss you so much.”

 

“I know…. And I love you too, more than I can say. I promise it won’t be long now. I can’t cope being apart from you.”

 

Serena looked up to see Evie and Donna hovering a few feet away, clutching presents.

 

“I think I’m needed, do you want to stay on line or….?”

 

“No, you go, and contact me when you’re home, when we can be a little more private.”

She raised her eyebrow suggestively and Serena felt a thrill run down her spine at what Bernie was obviously implying.

 

“Oh, and Fleur should have my presents, so you can give her a chaste thank you kiss if you wish.”

 

Serena blushed immediately.

 

“I think we’ve already covered that, I’m afraid,” and then chuckled at Bernie’s look of outrage. “And yes, she does remember the 13 ways she could meet her end at your own fair hands..”

 

She blew her a kiss and cut the connection before she started to cry, taking a moment before waving Donna and Evie over.

 

Presents opened she got up needing to stretch her legs, and to greet some of the more recent arrivals. She wandered over to Fleur who was near the steps by the door to the roof.

 

“Bernie mentioned you might have taken charge of her presents for me. Is that right?”

 

“Maybe,” said Fleur flirtatiously, “depends on what you’re willing to give me in return?”

 

Serena sighed and tipped her head back in exasperation.

 

“Fleur,” she said sternly, “you’ve already had your kiss. Do not run the risk of angering my _‘paramour’_ any more. I _will_ tell on you.”

 

Fleur sighed.

 

“I don’t think she has any idea how lucky she is to have you. There aren’t many women who would wait around while their partner decided to be the ‘big cheese’ and get a bit of glory in another country. _I_ wouldn’t treat you like that and you know it. When you’re fed up of waiting, just let me know..”

 

Serena felt a white hot blaze of rage bubble up inside her as she took in Fleur’s words. She pulled her round to face her and tried to keep her voice low.

 

“Do not _ever_ ….. I repeat, _ever_ rubbish Bernie and all that she is…. to me. You have no idea what I put her through, what I put a lot of people through, when Elinor died. I even said I didn’t know if we had a future together, couldn’t even tell her I loved her. But she never blamed me or walked away. She carried on caring for Jason when I couldn’t, did her best to repair the damage I’d done to AAU for as long as she was able. She kept texting and sending emails, never expecting anything back, rarely getting anything back to start with. She never once let me forget that she was there for me, all I had to do was tell her when and if I was ready.”

 

Serena took a slow, deep breath to calm herself as she felt her voice getting louder.

 

“We.. _we_ decided to go to Nairobi together. And then she let me feel that it was okay for me to come back to Holby, she knew I needed to try and make recompense for all the pain I’d caused. So I did, even though I knew in my heart that she was scared of taking on this huge challenge all on her own, _dreading_ that I wouldn’t go back. She supported me…… and god help me she still does, heaven knows why, when I’ve reneged on nearly every promise I’ve ever made to her. But there’s one promise I’ll never break, that I couldn’t break, and that’s to love her for as long as I draw breath.”

 

Serena paused to wipe away the tears that were falling, and Fleur had the good grace to look ashamed at what she had said. She started to say so, but Serena held up her hand.

 

“I'm going to try and ignore this because since you returned to Holby, you’ve been a much needed friend. Let’s forget this ever happened and move on, okay?”

 

She nodded, and they walked back towards the table where Fleur had already placed a small parcel. Serena picked it up to read the tag, and smiled at the soppy message Bernie had written. She quickly unwrapped it, and stared in surprise at…..a table tennis bat. She looked at Fleur for an explanation, but she merely shrugged, having no idea what it was supposed to mean.

 

They both wandered over to the railing and Serena looked out over the hospital grounds. One or two more people came to say goodbye and she turned around, thinking that it was about time they started clearing everything away, now wanting to get home herself so that she could speak to Bernie again. Fletch seemed to read her thoughts and he strolled over to her.

 

“Don’t even think about tidying anything away. Virtually everything here is stackable and disposable, and I’ve already arranged for housekeeping to clear things up in the morning.”

 

Serena smiled gratefully at him.

 

“You’re too kind Fletch. Thank you.. for all this.”

 

“Hey, I wouldn’t even be here if it wasn’t for you and Bernie saving my life. I’m happy to do anything I can. And it wasn’t just me you know. Lots of people at Holby have good reason to thank you… and Bernie.”

 

As if on cue, Fleur cleared her throat, to attract her attention. Serena turned to look at her and saw she was struggling to get something out of the pocket of her Holby hoodie.

 

“This is the other present from Bernie, but given our earlier conversation I’m not sure I’m the one who should be making the speech that goes with it…”

 

“No, you’re not,” said a very familiar voice, “I’ll take it from here.”

 

Serena whirled round to see Bernie coming from the other side of the air unit, holding her hand out to take a small package from Fleur. She took a couple of long strides to reach Serena’s side and pulled her into her chest, wrapping her arms around her, whispering “Surprise.”

 

Serena couldn’t speak, could barely stand, and as Bernie leaned back to look at her face she put out a hand to grip the railing again, not trusting her legs to hold her up.

 

“Serena?” said Bernie, anxiously, “are you okay?”

 

Serena looked at her beautiful, wonderful partner, her eyes bright with unshed tears, her chest heaving as she tried to regulate her breathing, and her legs so shaky she thought she might collapse, if not for Bernie still holding her. Bernie said nothing more for a couple of minutes until she could feel Serena calming slightly, and then she helped her towards a chair, letting her down gently.

She perched on the edge of the table, holding Serena’s hands in her own, as she leant forwards to kiss her softly.

 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you that much… but I’d heard your conversation with Fleur and there was no way I was going to let her give you my other gift.”

 

Serena’s next words were not exactly what Bernie had anticipated.

 

“So where on earth were you earlier….when we were talking?”

 

“What? Oh, erm… I was in the scrub room down on Darwin. Didn’t want to completely lie when I said I was just out of theatre. Jac thought I was having a breakdown or just plain losing my mind, from the looks she was giving me.”

 

Serena chuckled, and Bernie was thankful to see her starting to relax.

 

“But how on earth did you manage to get leave? I remember you saying it was impossible, and you were genuinely upset about it when we spoke earlier in the week.”

 

Bernie grinned sheepishly and reached forward to stroke her fingers down Serena’s face.

 

“It was quite sweet actually. Some of the members of the team saw how upset I was about not being able to make it, so they all swapped their shifts at the last moment so that I could have 48 hours in the UK. But, it does mean I have to work the next 5 weekends in a row...”

 

Bernie pouted, and pulled what Serena called ‘her puppy dog face’ which melted her heart, and she stood up and flung her arms around Bernie, finally kissing her with all the fervour that she deserved. They both pulled each other as close as possible and Serena swept one arm up Bernie’s back until her hand was tangled in those blonde locks, bruising their lips together, and when they finally broke apart they stayed with their foreheads touching, gasping for breath. They were vaguely aware of a few people still hanging around, waiting to say their goodbyes, but they only had eyes for each other. Fletch gathered Evie and Mikey to him, the latter standing with his mouth open at the sight of such unbridled passion, and he quietly said to the handful of guests left that maybe they should leave them to their much needed privacy, as he bundled them all towards the door.

 

“The best birthday present ever,” said Serena, smiling broadly, “which reminds me, what was Fleur going to give me when she was so rudely interrupted?”

 

“Ah… yes,” replied Bernie. But instead of answering the question, she slowly undid the top two buttons of Serena’s dress and pushed them apart so that she could softly kiss the swell of her breasts, all along the line of her bra.

 

“This is fast turning into my favourite dress.”

 

Serena arched towards her, bringing her own hands down to grasp Bernie’s backside, digging her fingers into those firm cheeks, pulling their hips together.

 

“Nice try Major Wolfe,” murmured Serena, “but I still want to know about my _second_ present.”

 

Bernie sighed and stood up straight, and gazed into Serena’s eyes.

 

“Okay, just come with me then,” and she held out her hand for Serena to take, and led her over to the railing, near to a whole cluster of fairy lights. She pulled a chair close to them and pushed Serena down onto it.

Bernie paced to and fro a few times, and Serena was just about to grab hold of her arm, when she stopped to face her.

 

“You know I love you, right?”

 

Serena nodded and started to look a little concerned.

“Of course. And I love you….”

 

Bernie nodded, and resumed her pacing. When she started to speak the first few words were mumbled as if she was talking to herself.

 

“I always swore that I would never do anything like this on a ‘special occasion’ and I know I promised to wait for eternity if necessary….. but it’s hard Serena, really hard.”

 

Serena caught her breath and she could feel a gnawing doubt begin in the pit of her stomach as she listened to Bernie.

 

“I know you find it hard too, and although I trust you, I can’t get it out of my head that Fleur, and others, are here for you when I can’t be. It makes me panic that being without me will all get too much for you, and that you’ll find someone to help fill the gap.”

 

Serena could feel a lump in her throat, and she tried to stop Bernie from saying anything else, tried to stop her from repeating her actions when she ran off to Kiev, by acting as if this was all for Serena’s benefit.

 

“No, no my darling, I could never…. I told you I want this….. I _need_ this to work. You must never think anyone could replace you…that I’d _want_ anyone else.”

 

Bernie put her hand in her pocket and took out a little pouch that she stared at intently before handing it to Serena.

 

“In my heart I do know…it's just my head that doesn't always get the message...and I’m not explaining myself very well.. as usual.” She huffed a little trying to compose herself.

“I hope you’ll be happy to wear this, it’s not an engagement ring, it’s an eternity ring. I want you to have it… not because I’m trying to stake a claim on you but because I want others to know that I’m waiting for you… for as long as it takes. And just in case you ever doubt that, you can look at it and know that you are loved. So...what do you say?”

 

With trembling hands Serena reached into the bag and pulled out a gold ring, studded with small diamonds and rubies and she stared at it in silence, making no attempt to put it onto her finger.

Bernie’s heart was hammering in her chest, and the noises of the night in a city faded as the sound of the blood rushing through her ears blocked everything else out. She wanted to speak, but couldn’t form the words anymore.

Serena looked at her with tears in her eyes and licked her lips slowly before replying.

 

“No..”

 

Bernie’s face fell as a crushing feeling flooded her chest, scarcely registering that Serena was still speaking.

 

“Yes, yes, yes a million times yes, you wonderful, sweet woman. Come here.”

 

She pulled Bernie into a hug, easing back merely to kiss her with all the love she could muster, pouring her soul into Bernie. When they broke apart they were both panting, and they both had tears running down their faces.

 

“I thought… I thought…” Bernie couldn’t get any more words out and Serena stroked her face kissing her softly, catching her bottom lip between hers, nibbling at it.

 

“I’m sorry for teasing….. but, you started it if you remember?”

 

She kissed her again and again and felt Bernie’s lips spread into a smile beneath hers. Serena pulled away again.

 

“There is however, one condition… or maybe two.”

 

Bernie looked at her, her brow furrowing in bemusement.

 

“Before you go back we need to go shopping for a ring for you too.”

She put a finger on Bernie’s lips as it looked as if she was going to protest.

 

“Before you say anything it can be entirely of your choosing, it doesn’t matter a flying fuck to me what finger you wear it on, I don’t care if you wear it on a chain round your neck, or keep it hidden in your purse. I want _you_ to look at it and know that it won’t be long before I’ll be there…. with you.”

 

Bernie was having trouble swallowing and she nodded, silently.

 

“And talking of fingers…. would you?”

 

Serena gave the ring to Bernie and held out her hand, waggling her ring finger to indicate where she wanted it to go and, holding her breath, Bernie slid it on, giving a huge sigh of relief when it fitted.

Bernie gathered her into her arms and kissed her, repeatedly, moving slowly down her neck until she was back kissing the slope of her breasts, her nose pushing into that oh, so delectable cleavage. Serena whimpered as Bernie’s hand moved to her front and popped open yet another button on Serena’s dress. Before Serena had time to register it, she realised Bernie had undone all the buttons and had pushed the dress open so that she could feast her eyes on the voluptuousness of her girlfriend’s body.

 

“You’re so beautiful,” she said in a husky voice, “and so incredibly sexy.”

 

 

 

Serena’s face flushed a deep shade of pink, and she groaned loudly as Bernie pushed her thigh between her legs, pulling her towards her, a look of lust blazing from her eyes as she watched the desire build in Serena, her mouth parting as she panted and pushed herself against Bernie’s leg. She then whimpered in frustration as Bernie withdrew from her.

She took Serena’s hand and led her, stumbling, to the air con unit, and she pushed her against it before telling her what she wanted to happen next.

 

“You can leave the dress on, but I want you to remove your bra and pants for me.”

 

Serena squeaked.

 

“I can’t, not here…. it’s too… public. It’s where I work… anyone could come up here.”

 

“And I thought _you_ were the adventurous one,” said Bernie with a smirk. “I’ll go and secure the door to convince you it's safe and you….. get rid of of those items, please..”

 

Serena felt a jolt of desire as she watched Bernie walk over with one of the tables to wedge against the handle of the door, breaking every Health and Safety rule in the book. She observed her as she turned around to walk slowly back towards her and her breathing became shallow and rapid as she scrambled to keep her balance and reached to undo her bra. When Bernie arrived in front of her she had just about managed to slide the bra straps down and off and she hurriedly flung it to one side. She found it both disturbing yet highly erotic to be on the roof of Holby hospital, nearly nude, and kept one of her arms clutched across her chest to hide her breasts.

Bernie pulled up a chair and sat in front of Serena smiling shyly at her.

 

“You know I don’t want you to do anything you’re really not happy about, don’t you?”

 

Serena nodded. “Yes,” she whispered.

 

“I love you so much, and right now I am so turned on by you.. your body.. the way you kiss me and the way you tangle your fingers in my hair when I touch you. Would you take off those, (pointing to her knickers) so I can really show you how much I want you here, now.”

 

Serena was mesmerised, her eyes locked onto Bernie’s, desperately wanting to be touched, knowing already that she was so wet that it would take very little effort from Bernie before she would come. She’d never in her life ever felt so cherished and… horny. It still surprised her, that at a time in their lives when the sex drive was supposed to be waning, they only had to look at each other to imagine themselves entwined, bringing each other to their climax. A thrill of anticipation ran through her and she brought both her hands down to hook her thumbs into the waistband of her panties. Bernie exhaled loudly as Serena’s breasts were exposed and she had to freeze for a moment as her own sex throbbed with desire as she watched Serena slide her knickers down and off. She stood and moved slowly towards her, drinking in the sight of Serena still with her dress on but still naked and exposed. She slowly gazed into the dark pools of Serena’s eyes. Bernie lowered her head and softly kissed Serena’s lips, once, twice, three times, and swiped her tongue into her mouth, withdrawing quickly when she felt Serena’s tongue try to do the same, causing her to moan as she pushed forward, chasing Bernie’s lips.

Bernie licked along her jawline and nipped and sucked along her collarbone and then further down until she was sucking strongly on the swell of her breasts, fully intent on leaving her mark there. She moved lower and lapped at each breast in turn before pulling back, taking her nipples between her fingers and thumbs, rolling and squeezing. She loved to watch Serena’s face as she did this, her eyes closed, panting through parted lips, hips pushing forwards to try and find some purchase to help ease the exquisite ache building in her lower belly. Bernie loved Serena’s breasts and could quite happily play with them, stroking and kissing them for hours on end. But however much Serena enjoyed her ministrations there would always come a time when a more pressing need overtook that bliss, and Serena had arrived at that point.

 

“Bernie,” she stuttered, taking one of her hands in hers and pushing it downwards. “Please, I need to feel you… I want to..”

 

Bernie moved her head up to kiss Serena passionately, this time allowing their tongues to meet and explore as her hand pushed between her legs making Serena groan loudly into her mouth.

 

“I hope you’re feeling strong Major,” gasped Serena, “because I don’t think I’ll be able to stay upright for much longer…”

 

“I’ll always catch you,” murmured Bernie as she pulled her closer, lifting Serena’s right leg to rest on the chair she had been sitting on. She stroked, gently at first, the whole length of Serena’s sex, her fingers becoming coated in her juices very quickly. Serena shuddered and gripped Bernie’s shoulders tightly, and as Bernie repeated the action, she felt her legs tremble as those fingers pushed right through her labia this time, pausing to put gentle pressure on her clit. Serena flung her head back in ecstasy and Bernie finally slid two fingers inside her, already able to feel her walls contracting as she did. She increased the tempo, curling her whole hand so that the base dragged back and forth over the bundle of nerves that right now were the centre of Serena’s universe. She felt Serena rise up onto her toes as her legs stiffened and she crashed over the other side of her climax, her body and legs shaking with the aftershocks, her hands clutching desperately around Bernie’s neck as she tried to stay upright.

Bernie carefully withdrew and placed both hands around Serena’s waist, steadying her as she moved her leg back from the chair so she had two feet on the ground. Serena tucked her head into Bernie’s neck as she attempted to gather her wits together. Bernie pressed kisses onto her head and whispered into her ear.

 

“You are the love of my life, and I adore how freely you give yourself to me. I hope tonight I’ve given you a better memory of this rooftop, to replace the last one we shared.”

 

Serena started to shake in Bernie’s arms and she was concerned that something she’d said or done had made Serena cry, until she heard the very girlish giggle that signified she was shaking with laughter. Serena pushed back so that she could look into Bernie’s eyes.

 

“Oh believe me, I won’t ever forget tonight, this, no way.”

 

She pressed her lips to Bernie’s and they swayed together, drinking each other in, their arms so woven around the other that there wasn’t a sliver of air between their bodies. When they broke apart Serena was the first to speak.

 

“You know, I can scarcely believe that I’m standing here virtually naked, while all you’ve removed is your coat. When am I going to get to see your delectable body Ms Wolfe?”

 

Serena started tugging at the hem of her top, trying to pull it clear of her trademark skinny jeans so that she could at least get her hands on the smooth skin of her stomach, but Bernie backed away.

 

“I think we should gather up any presents and cards, make you as respectable as we can, and head for home where you can show me properly just how happy you are with me.”

 

Serena nodded and set about looking for her bra and pants while Bernie did a tour of the roof, gathering together all that she figured belonged to Serena. It wasn’t long before Serena called to her.

 

“Have you come across my bra? I’ve found my knickers, even if they are a bit damp, but I can’t see the bra anywhere.”

 

Bernie returned to Serena’s side to help her look.

 

“That’s ridiculous, you hardly moved from this spot. Maybe a tad closer to the railing but….”

 

Bernie’s voice tailed off as they both looked at each other and then over the railing to the ground below, as Serena’s eyes widened in shock.

 

“No, no, no. Please tell me I did not fling it over there. Oh my god, what shall I do? It’s not as if I can exactly hide the fact that I’m braless. I'm not built like you...”

 

Bernie put an arm around her shoulders and hugged her.

 

“Don’t panic, it’s not as if there’ll be crowds of people around. You can wear my jacket and I’ll pull you close to me as we go out through the main entrance. It’ll be fine I promise. And once you’re in the car I’ll have a quick scout around to see if I can spot it. Okay?”

 

Serena nodded, still looking doubtful, but not really having any other options open to her, and thankfully Bernie managed to get her to her car with the minimum of fuss. She also did a quick foray around the area where she thought it might have landed but to no avail. She slipped into the driving seat of Serena’s car (as Serena had had a little too much to drink to consider driving) looking apologetic.

 

“Sorry, no sign of it. The best we can hope for is that it landed on the roof of a car and is miles away from here by now.”

 

She snorted with laughter as Serena pulled a face, before she too started to laugh.

As they pulled out of the car park Serena turned to look at Bernie.

 

“I have one more question for you. What the hell was the table tennis bat all about?”

 

She was surprised to see Bernie blush, and stumble over her reply.

 

“Ah…. yes. Well… um… perhaps we could discuss that… a little later? When we’re…. home? Please?”

 

Serena shrugged her shoulders, which gave Bernie chance to catch her breath, but she knew that it wouldn’t be long before Serena asked that question again. Hopefully by then it would be obvious, exactly what she intended to do with it.

 


	3. I will lay me down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where we find out what was the reason for the table tennis bat, and where Serena's bra landed. And Bernie also chooses a ring...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the final chapter..apart from a small Epilogue that I will try to post this weekend. It's fairly smutty so you have been warned.  
> I've really enjoyed writing this and thank you all for the kudos and very supportive comments, they mean everything.

I will lay me down

 

 

As they set off home, Serena breathed a sigh of relief at having managed to leave the hospital without anyone being aware of the state of her undress. She was trying to think when she’d last gone anywhere without a bra, and decided that, although not ideal at work, it did give her quite a feeling of freedom. She was already imagining days off around the house and garden when she could easily go without… and not just because she wasn’t dressed. She had already shrugged off Bernie’s jacket, it was too warm, even at 10.30pm, and she had noticed Bernie’s eyes sliding towards her chest whenever they were held up at lights or junctions. She decided to have a little fun. She stretched a few times, arching her back, and then pulled at the seat belt so that she could undo the top two buttons on her dress. She put her hand to the back of her neck and turned her head a few times, as if easing some kinks out of it, before dragging her arm down, pulling at the front of her dress, her fingers hooked over the next button. She smiled to herself when she heard Bernie moan quietly.

 

“It’s really quite warm tonight, isn’t it?”

 

When Bernie didn’t answer she continued.

 

“I know it’s nothing like the heat you’ve become used to recently, but it’s very pleasant if a little muggy. I’m quite glad I’m not wearing a bra now to be honest.”

 

And Serena put her other hand up and pulled the dress slightly apart, stroking the swell of her breasts with her fingers, cursing in her head that she had to wear a seat belt.

The groan that came from Bernie was much louder this time.

Serena popped a third button undone and started to knead the flesh she had exposed.

 

“For god’s sake Serena, do you want me to crash the bloody car?” Bernie almost snarled.

 

“Oh, I’m sorry. Am I distracting you? I didn’t realise….”

 

Bernie snorted derisively.

 

“Don’t give me that Campbell. You seem to forget, _I_ still haven’t had any….. release, yet. And just thinking of you on that roof..” and Bernie groaned and shifted in her seat.

 

Serena smiled and stroked her hand down Bernie’s arm.

 

“Something I promise to put right when we get back, after I’ve had a shower. I’m a little….. sticky.”

 

Bernie gave a strangled sob, even though her mouth was smiling.

 

“All I know is that this journey is taking far too long given the time of night. Oh, for pity's sake!” Bernie exclaimed as yet another set of traffic lights turned to red as they approached them.

 

Serena chuckled slightly, but wisely kept her thoughts to herself this time, sensing that Bernie was feeling more than a little tense.

 

In fact it was only 5 minutes later that Bernie pulled up onto the drive in front of Serena’s house. She felt a momentary pang, always wondering that had Elinor not died that day, whether this would now be ‘their’ house. She shook her head.

 

‘ _No use thinking that way, the past cannot be changed. Your home is anywhere she is,’_ a little voice said in her head, and she turned to Serena with a smile and a sigh.

 

Serena met her eyes and leaned towards her to plant a soft kiss on her lips.

 

“Come on soldier,” she teased, “let’s go freshen up and put you out of your misery.”

 

When they got into the house they both went straight upstairs to the bedroom, and as they closed the door Bernie caught hold of Serena by the waist and pulled her in for a hug.

 

“This feels strange,” she said, and Serena looked at her in surprise.

“I mean, the house feels so… empty. It’s hard to remember that Jason doesn’t really live here anymore.”

 

A sadness crept into Serena’s eyes, and she rested her head against Bernie’s chest, linking her arms behind her girlfriend’s back.

“It certainly feels too big for me at the moment, but when I consider selling it, I panic…. I’m sorry I’m so…feeble.”

 

“Hey, hey, don’t say that. What did once you tell me?

‘ _You are the most fantastic, fearless doctor in this entire hospital’._ Well, you’ve always been that to me.”

 

Serena looked at Bernie and brought her hand up to twist her fingers in her hair.

“You remember that?”

 

“How could I forget it? It was those words and the way you smiled at me that lowered all my defences, my brain short-circuited, and I kissed you……the rest, as they say, is history.”

 

Serena blinked away some tears before a small smile appeared.

“I can think of one good reason why it’s not so bad that Jason isn’t living here anymore,” she said coyly. “We don’t have to be quiet…. care to join me in that shower?”

 

Bernie’s eyes flashed and she squeezed Serena tightly.

“Just try and stop me.”

 

Considering how little clothing Serena was wearing compared to Bernie, she was only in the shower a few seconds before her. She cast a disapproving eye to the pile of garments on the bathroom floor, in danger of getting damp once the shower was on.

 

“That’s a very small suitcase you have with you, so I’m hoping you have brought enough clothes for the few hours you’re here, because I’m pretty sure those soon won’t be dry enough to be worn again.”

 

“A few essentials,” Bernie admitted. “But then again I’m not planning on wearing a great deal over the next 24 hours.”

 

She pulled Serena to her, but Serena twisted round so that she could turn on the shower, leaving Bernie to press her front to Serena’s back. As the water poured over them Bernie started to kiss down Serena’s neck, her hands moving up her body to cup and fondle her breasts. Serena turned around once more and kissed Bernie hungrily her hands smoothing down over her backside, luxuriating in the perfect shape beneath her fingers.

“Dear lord, no-one should have an ass like yours at our age,” she groaned.

 

“I could say the same thing about your breasts,” murmured Bernie, licking at the rivulets of water that were running between them.

For a few moments they were both lost in their thoughts, their bodies pressed close together, eyes closed as they remembered the first time they had showered together.

As Bernie started to manoeuvre Serena towards the wall, she stiffened slightly and shook her head before she spoke, somewhat apologetically.

 

“I hope you don’t mind, but I don’t actually want to have shower sex,” said Serena.”and I do realise how unfair that sounds, seeing how I have already has the pleasure of an orgasm, but I don’t think my legs will hold up to another….. could we maybe wash each other and then take this to the bed?”

 

Bernie pulled a pretend sad face, and then laughed.

“Of course,” she said, “I quite understand that you’re not up to another… knee-trembler.”

 

Serena swatted at her arm, and reached past her for the shower gel which she poured into her hand and proceeded to work it into a lather as she rubbed her palms up and down Bernie’s sides before spinning her round to do the same to her back, lingering just a little longer as she circled the cheeks of her delectable bum. She turned Bernie again and poured gel into _her_ hands, asking her to wash her in the same way. By the time they were face to face again, they were both breathing a little heavily. Bernie started to wash Serena’s legs, starting at her ankles, slowly working her way up to her thighs. As she reached the top, she stopped and moved her hands to Serena’s shoulders, sliding down her arms, and then back up to her neck, curling one of her hands to the back of Serena’s head, pulling her forward to capture her lips in a tender kiss. They both gasped as they pulled apart, and then Bernie’s hands were on her waist, slowly moving up until each one was holding a breast, smoothing across the soft flesh until they met the nipples, already standing proud, and Serena had to put her hands on Bernie’s shoulders to steady herself as a throb of desire shot straight down between her legs. Without pausing Bernie moved her hands down her sides until she was gripping Serena’s hips, then stroked down her lower belly until she met the coarse curls there. Serena moved her legs slightly apart as Bernie’s hand moved in between them and she groaned as Bernie’s fingers slid from back to front, applying the barest amount of pressure, which caused her legs to buckle slightly. Serena swiftly grasped both of Bernie’s wrists with her own hands and gripping tightly she placed them on her shoulders before saying breathlessly,

“That’s enough…. your turn now.”

 

She squeezed more gel onto her own hands, although if she was honest, any pretence of them washing each other had long since flown out of the window. She carefully repeated the actions of Bernie, minus the kiss. She felt that if she kissed her now that they wouldn’t be leaving the shower until at least one of them had climaxed. When she dropped her hands to Bernie’s waist she felt her stiffen in anticipation of where they were headed next and as her fingers traced the underside of her breasts, Bernie gripped her shoulders almost painfully. Slowly, teasingly, she stroked along them using only her fingertips, and as they grazed across the nipples Bernie cried out her name, as she flung her head backwards. Serena immediately let her hands fall to Bernie’s hips, and when Bernie opened her eyes to look at her, they were almost black with desire. Shakily she dropped her head to rest on Serena’s shoulders, her breathing laboured.

 

“Shall we get you to bed?” Serena softly whispered in her ear, and Bernie nodded mutely, not even sure if she could move without causing enough friction to make her come.

Sensing this, Serena turned off the shower, hoping that the ensuing cooling of their bodies would dampen down her nerve endings. She opened the shower door and, leaving Bernie standing there she stepped out and reached for one of the bath towels to wrap herself in. She then picked up a second towel and held it out to Bernie who took a deep breath before joining her, enfolding herself in the warmth of the soft material. After a few more seconds Bernie raised her head and shook it, a small shy smile spreading across her face. Serena leaned in towards her and kissed her cheek lightly.

 

“Okay?” she asked tentatively, and Bernie nodded, exhaling loudly.

“Come on then,” Serena said. “Let me take care of you.”

 

She opened the door to their bedroom and led her to the bed, where they sat, side by side, leaning against each other, kissing. As they both relaxed into each other Serena stroked Bernie’s face and placed her lips close to Bernie’s ear.

 

“Let’s get into bed, hmm?”

 

Bernie gave a small nod and as they stood, Serena threw back the cover, and at the same time they both dropped their towels and slid under the cover, quickly wrapping their arms around each other. They just lay there for a few moments, and then Serena started to kiss along Bernie’s shoulder, sucking, then biting, before returning to the same spot to kiss again. She moved her body on top of Bernie, pushing Bernie’s legs apart so that her own could rest inside them. She looked down at her and kissed her passionately, her tongue pushing through those sensuous lips to touch and taste, and a thrill of pleasure ran through her as Bernie responded, eagerly. She raised her body up onto her forearms and gazed at the sight of her lover starting to unravel beneath her, her hips twisting, trying to put some sort of pressure where she needed it most. Serena smiled seductively and moved her head down towards Bernie’s breasts, hovering over her nipple, mouth open as she stared at Bernie’s face, seeing the desperation there. She covered it with her mouth and moved her tongue rapidly back and forth over the tip and was rewarded by a stifled squeal from Bernie as she arched upwards off the bed. Releasing the nipple on her left breast, she moved across to the right, again pausing, making Bernie wait.

 

“Remember, you don’t _have_ to be quiet. You can let go… if that’s what you want.”

 

She then repeated the action on her right breast, smiling as she heard a deep groan and a “please?” from the woman beneath her.

Recognising that she had possibly already tested Bernie as far as she could she moved rapidly down her body, kissing the softer areas and biting along her hips, trying to hold them still as Bernie writhed beneath her.

 

“Okay, okay,” she murmured, “not long now.”

She paused again however, before moving any lower.

“Do you want fingers or my mouth?” she asked gently. “Or both?”

 

Bernie was panting now and part of her brain was screaming that she couldn’t give a damn as long as this didn’t last much longer. But she also appreciated the care and love that was in that question, and she opened her eyes long enough to reply.

“Fingers… inside, please. I want… I want to kiss you.”

 

Serena placed one soft kiss on her folds, tasting the wetness that was seeping out of them before moving rapidly back up the bed, and as their lips crashed together she slid her fingers through and into Bernie. The two fingers were soon joined by a third, so wet that she took them with ease, raising her hips to meet each thrust of Serena’s hand. Bernie’s arms were wrapped around Serena, one digging into her back, raking her nails up and down her spine while the other cupped her head so that their mouths stayed together, bruising in their passion until with a loud cry Bernie flung her arms wide to grasp at the bed as she hurtled into a moments oblivion.

 

Serena slowly removed her fingers, wiping them along the sheet as she brought her hand up to stroke Bernie’s cheek just as her eyes flickered open, still unseeing as she fought to regulate her heartbeat. Finally, as she brought the room into focus again she looked at Serena and smiled.

 

“Hello there,” whispered Serena, “ have I told you lately that I love you?”

She shifted her body slightly so that they were lying facing each other.

 

“You may have done,” Bernie replied, “but tonight your actions were far louder than words.”

“Ready for sleep?”asked Serena.

“Hmmm. Yes, I think so, as long as you are… satisfied?”

 

Serena twisted round so that her back was against Bernie’s front.

“For now,” she murmured, “don’t worry though, I’ll be sure to wake you if I need you.”

 

She was rewarded with a snort of laughter as Bernie snuggled into her.

 

It was about 5 hours later that Bernie roused up, no longer spooning Serena, but as was often the case when they slept in the same bed, their hands had found each other and Serena’s head was resting on her shoulder. She looked down at this beautiful woman and her stomach clenched at the thought than in less than 36 hours she would be heading to the airport, once again saying goodbye to the love of her life.

She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment and felt a single tear escape down her cheek. How had the universe conspired to bring them together, only to fling them apart time and time again? She knew that many would give their eye teeth to experience the sort of love they shared, but knowing it didn’t make the parting any easier. She eased herself away from Serena’s head and swung her legs out of bed, moving slowly so that she didn’t disturb her, staring back at their hands.

 

“It’s so bloody unfair,” she whispered to the world, “I don’t care what you say.”

 

“I know,” murmured Serena, from the bed. “Which is why we need to make the most of whatever time we have… don’t you agree?”

Bernie looked at Serena, blinking, wondering when she developed the capability to read her mind.

“Sorry if I woke you,” she said, “I was going to get myself a quick shower and then go and make some coffee to bring back to bed. You have another doze until I get back.”

 

She leaned back to kiss the top of Serena’s head, untangling their hands as she did.

“Are you sure?” Serena mumbled, “I could come and shower with you if you’d like?”

 

“No, it’s fine… if the day pans out the way I’m hoping, there’ll be plenty of chances for shared showers later on.”

 

Bernie suddenly paled at the thought that Serena might have to work at some point today.

“You aren’t due into work are you?” she asked nervously.

 

Serena rolled onto her back and opened her eyes a smidge to look at Bernie.

“I was due in at 12.00, but don’t worry, there’s not a cat in hell’s chance that I’m setting foot in that hospital today. I’ll ring Abigail in a couple of hours and tell her that unless she wants my resignation, effective immediately, she’ll have to arrange cover. I’m pulling a sickie if necessary.”

 

Serena stretched and almost purred.

“And unless you get that body of yours out of my sight pretty darn quick, I will ravish you before you can say ‘Serena Wendy Campbell’,”and she shot her hand out and pinched Bernie’s backside, making her jump up off the bed.

 

Laughing, Bernie headed for the en-suite.

“You’ll pay for that later.”

 

“I’m counting on it.”

Serena winked, and then closed her eyes as she heard the shower being turned on.

 

It was around 30 minutes later that Bernie returned to the bedroom clutching two mugs of coffee. She’d found her sleep shorts and an old t-shirt in what had used to be her drawer just over a year ago, before their world fell apart. She put the coffee down on the side table next to Serena, and sat gently down on the bed, reaching out to stroke the hair away from her face. When she was alone in her apartment in Nairobi, she often mused on what their lives would have been like now if Elinor had lived. Would they still both be working at Holby, the Trauma Bay still up and running with Serena there to fight her corner? Or would the wanderlust that she had always given into, have returned to put pressure on them, as it had on every other relationship she had had. She couldn’t deny the excitement and challenge she had found in Nairobi, the feeling that she was making a difference, in the same way she had when she was in the RAMC. But when she looked at this woman she wondered how much longer she really wanted to be apart from her….these snatched moments were never going to be enough. Wherever her home was going to be, the only certainty was that it had to have Serena in it.

She leant down to place a gentle kiss on her cheek, and was surprised when Serena’s arm snaked around her waist, trying to pull her down onto the bed. She pulled free as Serena opened her eyes and pouted.

 

“Don’t you want to come back to bed?”

 

“Maybe… but first, there is coffee to drink, so why don’t you sit up and I’ll sit next to you, and we’ll plan the rest of the day.”

 

Serena pushed herself upright, and then shivered slightly as she remembered she was naked.

“Be an angel and sort me out something to slip on while I head for the loo.”

 

Bernie foraged through a drawer and when Serena returned to bed she slipped on a similar combination of clothes to Bernie, before joining her back in bed. They drank in silence for the most part their free hands once again finding each other. When they’d finished Serena brought Bernie’s hand up to her lips, to kiss each finger separately.

 

“Right Ms Wolfe… how would you like to spend the next 24 hours? Bearing in mind of course that I intend to make good my promise of taking you out to get that ring we talked about.”

When she didn’t answer, Serena felt a little anxious, wondering if Bernie didn’t want this, or if it would cause problems back in Nairobi.

 

“Bernie? If the idea makes you uncomfortable you know I will understand? I tend to charge ahead when I get an idea up here,” and she tapped her temple, “but I thought, you know, as you’d bought me one that it was something you wouldn’t be adverse to… possibly… if it wouldn’t make things _difficult_ for you when you get back..”

 

Serena found her words being cut off by Bernie’s lips on hers, and she sank into the kiss with relief.

When they broke apart, Bernie nuzzled into Serena’s neck before she spoke.

“I’d be proud and happy to wear one, but nothing fancy for obvious reasons. I’d rather look for something that I might have bought for myself, if that’s alright? And as much as right now I would love to explore your body, I’m leaning towards getting this sorted as early as possible, so that we have the rest of the day to ourselves.”

 

Serena looked at the time before she slid down the bed, dragging Bernie with her.

“Well, I think we can spare 30 minutes or so to at least canoodle before we get dressed.”

 

And she pulled Bernie in, to wrap her arms around her and remind herself of how much she meant her.

The 30 mins turned into 45, but they actually both stopped short of initiating anything more than kissing, although the kisses did not just stop at their lips, and Bernie had to remind Serena more than once that love-bites that were visible when wearing scrubs were a definite ‘no-no’ as far as she was concerned.

 

I fact they both belonged to a generation who considered that ‘love-bites’ or ‘hickeys’ was something that was a feature of the teenage years, when having one was almost a rite of passage, and when controlling your urges was something still to be learnt. In fact they had both thought that the older you got the less acceptable it was to sport one. But that was before they had found each other, and realised that passion is passion whatever your age, and getting ‘carried away’ was not necessarily the prerogative of the young. In fact Serena, who had embraced and deeply enjoyed most of her previous sexual encounters, felt that she had never found this intensity of emotion and lust for anyone else. But today she listened to Bernie’s pleas, and ‘marked’ her only once, on her hip.

 

Instead of going to a major high street retailer, Serena persuaded Bernie to go and look at a small craft centre where artists and craftsmen had studios, and where she felt that the silversmith there would be able to guide Bernie in choosing the sort of ring that she would be happy to wear, possibly even designing one for her. After about 30 minutes of the artisan jeweller, Brenda, showing them both a range of designs, Bernie chose the ring she wanted, even though it meant that she couldn’t walk out of there wearing it today. It was a hammered white gold band with a piece of lapis lazuli set into it and would take around 4 weeks to make. Because the price of it was so modest, compared to what she thought Bernie must have paid for hers, and because Serena wanted Bernie to have something to take back with her tomorrow, she also bought a fine silver necklace with a small drop piece of the same semi precious stone, which she fastened around her neck before they left the studio.

 

“Thank you,” said Bernie sincerely. “I love it.”

And she kissed Serena as they walked towards the coffee shop that was on the site.

 

From then on it was as if the devil had entered Serena, as she made it her mission to tempt Bernie into inappropriate actions at every conceivable turn.

While they were sitting in the café, she kept trying to place kisses on every square inch of bare skin she could see, while Bernie was continually squirming out of her reach. As they walked around the rest of the studios she continually tried to back Bernie against a wall so that she could put her arm around her while standing next to her, and then drop her hand to caress Bernie’s backside, giving little pinches here and there. On one occasion she slid her fingers between her legs which caused Bernie to jump forward with a small cry.

Before they’d even got to the end of the row of shops Bernie was striding ahead to get to the car as quickly as possible. When Serena caught up she opened the door and sat down in the passenger seat, and before she could even get her seatbelt on Bernie had turned on the engine and started to pull out of the parking spot. They drove in almost total silence for 15 minutes apart from Bernie checking on some directions, but the clipped tone of her voice stopped Serena from trying to engage in any of their usual banter. When they were still around 4 miles from home Serena cleared her throat to speak.

 

“I’m know I’ve pissed you off with my behaviour over the last hour, so for what it’s worth… I’m really sorry. I don’t want us to fight when we have so little time left together.”

 

Bernie startled Serena by slamming on the brakes to pull into a small lay-by. As soon as she turned the engine off she was up and out of the car, walking rapidly away, leaving Serena still sitting there. She watched Bernie leave the lay-by to cross the road and go and lean on a gate looking out over a field. Feeling somewhat uncertain Serena followed her and was horrified to see that Bernie was crying.

 

“Oh, my darling I didn’t mean to upset you. I know I was being a bit… mischievous, and yes, potentially it could have been embarrassing, but I was just trying to…. oh, I don’t know… tease? Spice things up? The devil got into me and I do struggle to control myself when I’m around you. I’m so, so, sorry, I overstepped the mark.”

 

Serena was mortified to think that her behaviour had caused Bernie so much anguish, while another part of her brain was cursing at how good she looked even when crying. (She was an ugly crier, she knew, her whole face crumpling, but Bernie could let the tears flow with very little change in the rest of her face.)

 

Bernie refused to look at her as she tried pull herself together, and when she spoke she didn’t sound angry at least.

“Last night, when we were at _your_ place of work, with no one around and hardly any chance of being disturbed or observed, when I initiated something to tease, your first reaction was that it was ‘ _inappropriate’._ But when you goosed me just then in front of complete strangers you somehow considered _that_ acceptable?”

 

Bernie’s voice was thick with emotion and she sounded almost scared, fearful. Serena didn’t know what to say except to repeat she was sorry. She felt there was more to it than that, but wisely kept quiet, waiting until Bernie could gather her thoughts enough to explain just why she was so upset.

 

“Serena, I _have_ believe that you will come to join me in Nairobi, when you are ready…. and that until then we have to be honest with each other, whether it’s via the wonder of global communications or face to face, like this. I know how much it took for you to come over for my birthday when Ginny and Jason were ill, and I will never doubt your love for me.”

Bernie was staring out over the fields as she spoke, not able to look at Serena, knowing the anxiety that she would see in her face.

“But I don’t think you appreciate how _different_ things are in Kenya, when it comes to same sex couples. Even among my close colleagues, who on the whole are very…. understanding, there are some who probably don’t really approve. Although they would stop short of voicing this out loud. But it’s certain that the board of the hospital would not be so accepting, and as for the authorities…”

 

Bernie sighed and as Serena started to respond she finally turned to look at her and held up her hand to stop her.

“I’ve spent a large part of my life hiding my sexuality, and while I would _never_ deny it now if I was asked outright, it’s something I know I can still hide when necessary, even if you are standing right next to me. But you are so…open, you don’t stop to think when your feelings surface, you just act, and that’s partly what caused me to run to Kiev if you remember? So I’m scared of what that might mean over there. I want us to be together in Nairobi, I really do and there is so much there for us to share, but this… touching, and teasing can only happen behind locked doors…. and honestly? I’m beginning to wonder if you can do that.”

And as tears started to trickle down her face again, Serena put her hand over one of Bernie’s.

 

“So what now?” she said softly. “After giving me a ring last night, and us choosing one for you today, not to mention the necklace you’re currently wearing, you are now saying that this is it? At least until you’re ready to come back to Holby?”

 

She took a deep shuddering breath before continuing.

“My darling Bernie, it’s partly because I know how difficult things will be over there that I let myself enjoy _us_ , here. I’m feel so much luckier than you, because my sapphic awakening came in an era and in a place where I haven’t had to hide from anyone. But you’re right, I did step over a line today, and for that I can only apologise. And I know that it will be hard not to touch you, by stroking your arm or leaving my hand on yours for a second longer than may be deemed acceptable. But I will adjust… and so will they, when they see that I’m like that with everyone that I care about, whether it’s co-worker, patient, or partner. I promise I will _never_ jeopardise your position in the hospital, or out of it. I will definitely keep it confined to our home …...and maybe the occasional store cupboard.” 

Serena winked as she said the last few words, and Bernie gave her a watery smile in response.

 

“I guess I asked for that…”

 

“I’m just relieved you knew it was a joke…..and I know it’s pointless to ask you to stop imagining the worst case scenario once your head gets hold of something, you’ll always have a Plan B and probably a Plan C as well……. just promise me to do what you’ve done today, and _talk_ to me about it. Don’t shut me out while you decide the best course of action all on your own.”

Serena leaned in towards Bernie and kissed her, gently at first and then with more passion, as Bernie gathered her into her arms. When they broke apart, Bernie wiped her eyes to see Serena grinning like the Cheshire Cat.

 

“The clock is ticking Ms Wolfe, what say we take this back home…..unless?” And she nodded to the field and raised a very suggestive eyebrow causing Bernie to snort with laughter.

 

“Um, no. Definitely not. What I have in mind will not be shared with anyone one else, not even a field mouse.”

And taking Serena’s hand they ran to the car.

 

They were back at the house in about 15 minutes, taking a little longer than anticipated because of an accident. Bernie couldn’t help but slow down to see if they were needed, but an ambulance crew were already present and as far as Serena could tell it looked as if it was a case of walking wounded only. She breathed a sigh of relief as they picked up speed again when they were past it, she didn’t want to waste a minute of the very little time they had left.

 

Once inside however, they stood for a moment in the hall until Serena started to walk towards the stairs, and held out her hand for Bernie to take. Bernie hesitated.

 

“I’ll just be a second, I want to collect my things together first and bring them upstairs, so I don’t waste any precious time in the morning. Oh, and don’t you dare start anything without me.”

 

Serena felt her face flush and a warmth spread down to her loins.

“Aye, aye Major,” she murmured, “just don’t take too long.”

 

When Bernie got to the bedroom a few minutes later Serena was in the en-suite, so she sat down on the bed. She thought back over the morning and wondered how two people, so in love with each other, could still manage to get some things so wrong. She was desperate for them to be in the same house, city, even continent for more than a couple of days, or a week or even a month. No surprise really, when you considered that despite the friendship they had forged over the 2 years they had known each other, they had never lived together for more than a month. And even that had happened in the south of France where it had been like a holiday, with no pressures from the outside world to affect how they acted around each other. Bernie leant back against the headboard and smiled, remembering that time when she had woken each day to the sight or sound of her love moving around the small cottage she had rented. She closed her eyes to imagine what her world would be like when they finally got to share their lives properly. She knew it wouldn’t be a bed of roses, but she didn’t want it to be perfect. Perfection can get pretty boring, and she knew that life with Serena Campbell would never be boring. Suddenly she felt two warm lips pressed against her own and she opened her eyes to gaze at the face of the person she wanted to spend the rest of her life with, and she felt her heart beat a little bit faster.

Serena knelt on the bed next to her and kissed her again, and this time Bernie responded, wrapping her arms around her, pushing her tongue into Serena’s mouth, tasting the mouthwash that she had evidently recently used.

 

“Hmm…that’s very fresh, would you excuse me while I go and do the same?”

 

Serena stopped Bernie from getting off the bed.

“I.. quite like the way you taste actually…unless you really, really want to.”

 

Bernie quirked an eyebrow.

“Don’t tell me we’re going down the ‘honeycomb and chocolate’ road again?”

 

“You’re never going to forget that are you?”

 

“Not on your life!”

 

So Bernie stayed where she was and they rested against each other, Serena burying her head into Bernie’s neck, listening to her heartbeat. Bernie put her mouth close to Serena’s ear.

“You do know that I haven’t quite forgiven you for your behaviour this morning?” she murmured .

 

Serena pulled back in astonishment.

“Really? I thought we’d discussed this, and I apologised and it was all good now.”

 

“Hmm, you really think that was enough to resolve our differences? Can I trust you not to repeat that sort of behaviour again? I’m not convinced….... I think that you probably need to be disciplined, so that you remember the next time you try anything like that, that there are consequences.”

 

Bernie swiftly manoeuvred Serena around and pushed her flat onto the bed facing down, but across her legs. Serena struggled to get up, but she was no match for the strength in Bernie’s upper body and without too much effort, she easily kept her pinned down. Bernie leaned forwards and with her mouth she pulled Serena’s skirt up towards her waist exposing the top of her thighs.

 

“So, if I move my hands, are you going to accept your punishment? Or do we just waste the rest of the day with me holding you down?”

Serena was breathing heavily now, partly out of annoyance at feeling so impotent, and partly because there was a throbbing beginning between her legs as she imagined the route this ‘discipline’ would take. She stopped struggling, and turning her head to look at Bernie and blushing profusely, she nodded.

“Okay. I promise I won’t move if you stop holding me down. I’ll accept my punishment….Major.”

 

The last was said very coyly but with a small smile, and as Serena lowered her eyes in submission Bernie’s heartbeat rocketed. She hadn’t expected to feel so turned on by this, she’d never considered it to be something she would be comfortable with, but ever since Serena had confessed that the thought of a spanking might be something she would enjoy, she had resolved to make it happen.

Keeping her one hand just resting between her shoulder blades, Bernie used her right hand to push Serena’s skirt up to her waist, exposing her plump derrière encased in black lace, and her breathing hitched. She smoothed her hand over it, circling again and again, occasionally digging her nails in, to drag against the material, causing a small whimper from Serena. Then suddenly, her hand was gone, only to return swiftly to administer a sharp slap, before it was stroking again.

Serena jumped, although it hadn’t really hurt, but it was the uncertainty, not knowing exactly when it would happen again that had all her nerve endings on high alert. The way that Bernie was caressing her was very erotic and she could feel the crotch of her knickers being pulled tightly against her sex as Bernie’s fingers snagged on them, as she stroked along their edge. The next time Bernie’s hand left her skin she clenched slightly as she waited for the descent, and started to squirm when it didn’t happen

 

“Look at me” Bernie whispered, and as she turned her head she saw her arm fall and two more slaps bounced off her cheeks making her groan. These were rapidly followed by two more and now Serena could feel the tingling starting and wondered if her bottom was changing colour. Bernie could feel the warmth from where her hand had struck, and knew that if she didn’t take it slowly she could lose control of herself, and she wished she had taken off her own jeans before she had pulled Serena into position.

 

“How many is that?” she asked briskly, trying to mask how aroused she was.

 

Serena swallowed noisily, and her voice sounded strained, even to her.

“Um.. 5,” she said breathlessly.

 

Bernie pushed her hand below the waistband of Serena’s knickers, and Serena instinctively raised her hips to meet it. Bernie used that moment to pull them down to the top of her thighs, and she bent over to lick and nip at the rosy hue she had induced. Serena’s moans grew louder and Bernie pulled back momentarily before she struck that beautiful ass again.

“Well, what’s that phrase.… ‘six of the best’? Was that six of the best for you Ms Campbell?”

 

Serena had bitten down onto the duvet as the last blow fell, not because it was painful, but because she couldn’t control the desire that was coursing through her body. She nodded in response to Bernie’s question and trembled slightly as she felt strong arms lifting her up.

“Nearly done,” said Bernie softly. “Just 3 more I think… so that I know that you’ve learnt your lesson.”

 

She gazed into Serena’s eyes, seeing how dark and wide they were, and pushed her up and off the bed. Serena looked puzzled, until Bernie started to pull her knickers down her legs and off her feet.

She indicated for Serena to remove her skirt completely and then her top and bra. Only when she was naked did Bernie speak again.

 

“ I need you to go to my hold-all and bring me what is lying on the top of my clothes, please.”

As Serena took tentative steps across the room, Bernie quickly divested herself of her jeans and top, so that when Serena turned round, holding the table tennis bat and a disbelieving look on her face, Bernie was sitting back on the bed clad only in her bra and pants. Bernie smiled.

 

“You did want to know what it was for, didn’t you?”

Serena walked slowly back, her heart hammering, but she wasn’t sure if that was from a small amount of trepidation or the sexual tension that had just ratcheted up 3 or 4 notches. Bernie reached out to take Serena’s hand.

 

“You know you can say no… anytime you want….don’t you? This is all for you, so I will only do it if you’re sure you want to..”

Serena nodded, and handed the bat to Bernie.

“I want it,” she croaked.

 

Bernie pulled two pillows round and put one of them on her legs and motioned for Serena to lie back across them, the pillow raising her backside slightly, and allowing Bernie to get a glimpse of the now shiny curls between her legs. The other pillow she put under Serena’s head, to make her more comfortable. She stroked Serena’s face gently and kissed her before leaning back and Serena caught hold of her hand to bring it to her lips, then grasped it tightly in anticipation of the next few minutes. With her other hand Bernie dragged her nails down Serena’s spine until once again she was massaging the now, barely pink cheeks of her buttocks. Serena pushed upwards towards her hand, and for the first time Bernie allowed her fingers to slip in between her legs, feeling how wet Serena was and how easily her fingers could slide inside her.

 

“Careful..” muttered Serena, and Bernie quickly withdrew, not wanting to tip her over the edge just yet.

 

She picked up the bat and drew it’s dimpled surface over Serena’s ass and heard a hiss from Serena, but forced herself not to look at her. She raised her arm and brought the bat down to make a resounding thwack as it met flesh and Serena gave a loud groan. Not wanting to prolong the tension, Bernie repeated the action and this time a breathless “Hooo,” issued from Serena’s mouth as she expelled a lungful of air. Pausing briefly to stroke the reddening surface, Bernie turned the bat on its side and pushed it deep between Serena’s legs, dragging it up and away as she raised her arm once more to deliver the final blow. In a split second she registered the gleaming edge of the bat where it had pushed through her folds, the vice like grip that Serena now had on her other hand and the trembling of her legs as the bat fell for the third time. Serena yelled and bucked her hips wildly, and Bernie dropped the bat to plunge her fingers straight into Serena, already feeling them being gripped tightly and with two quick thrusts Serena came, her juices flooding out over the pillow, her whole body trembling. She gathered Serena swiftly into her arms and turned her so they lay side by side breathing heavily, murmuring words of comfort to each other as Serena descended from the dizzy heights of her intense orgasm.

Bernie stroked her hair and kissed her softly, her heart so full of love, for the trust Serena had shown in submitting to her. As their breathing slowed, Bernie tilted Serena’s head so that she could look at her face, wanting to be sure that she hadn’t taken it too far.

“Are you okay….. I mean, it wasn’t too much? I would never want to hurt you..”

 

Serena blushed and her eyes slid to the side under Bernie’s caring gaze.

“No, it was…. very.. good. I’m almost embarrassed at how much I enjoyed that.”

 

“Have you ever….. tried anything like that before?”

 

“God no! I mean…. there’s no one else I would have trusted, and …. I liked the fact that you didn’t try to tie me up or hold me down. A spanking is one thing, BDSM is another thing entirely.”

 

Serena finally, shyly, met Bernie’s eyes.

“Is it something you’d… like to explore?”

 

Bernie shook her head. “Not really something I’ve ever fantasised about… but it was good, seeing how much you…”

Serena lifted her hand to tenderly stroke her cheek.

 

“Then I’m even more grateful to you for letting me experience that. Thank you, you generous beautiful woman, whom I love more with every passing hour.”

 

They lay together for a few more minutes before Serena raised herself up on one arm and looked up and down Bernie’s body.

“It’s only just occurred to me that you are still wearing clothes….. skimpy though they may be, I want to see and feel all of you.”

 

Bernie laughed and slid the straps of her bra down and off her arms before reaching around to unfasten it. Then, under Serena’s watchful stare she pushed her panties down her legs, kicking them clear of the bed. Serena gave a big sigh.

 

“How does your body still look as if you are in your thirties? You’ve had 2 children as opposed to my one, you eat anything you like and it never puts a pound on you. I ought to hate you.”

 

Bernie shrugged.

“Good genes I guess. My mother was the same, she even did a spot of modelling when she was in her twenties. And I also don’t consume quite so many empty calories through alcohol as you…but Serena? Please, please don’t think I want you to change, l love everything about you.”

 

When Bernie mentioned her mother, which she rarely did, Serena felt a twisting in her gut and she took hold of Bernie’s hand.

“There’s still so much to learn about you, so much I don’t know. So much I want to know.”

 

She kissed her and then moved her lips to Bernie’s earlobe, nibbling at it and then sucked gently just below it, along her jaw, mindful that she mustn’t leave a mark.

“And don’t think I didn’t hear your comment about my love of wine…. for which you will pay dearly before tomorrow.”

 

She moved down Bernie’s neck, just one of the parts of her body that Serena found so exquisite, kissing softly as she went. She rolled over to straddle Bernie and pushed both of her arms above her head then continued kissing down, in between her breasts, leaving them untouched for the moment. She licked across her stomach and was just about to suck hard enough to leave a mark, just above her belly button, when the loudest grumble emanated from that region, causing them both to giggle uncontrollably.

Serena recovered first, and slid off Bernie until they could control themselves.

 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t think about the fact we haven’t eaten since that hasty slice of toast before we left this morning, and a couple of coffees. And although I could probably live off my reserves,” (and she patted her stomach with a smile) “you my dear, can’t. Shall I go and make us something quick, like scrambled eggs on toast, and maybe have a takeaway later?”

 

Bernie sighed as she nodded her head.

“ I suppose I can wait to be ravished for around 30 minutes, and food might give me a little more stamina… I’ll come down and keep you company though, I know you wouldn’t want me lying up here, on my own, taking matters in my own hands.”

 

“Damn right I wouldn’t!”

 

And Serena got out of bed and quickly nipped into the en-suite re-emerging a couple of minutes later wearing a silky blue negligee, and threw the matching robe in Bernie’s direction before heading downstairs. It was only a matter of seconds it seemed before Bernie was standing behind her in the kitchen, wrapping her arms around Serena’s waist.

 

“Look at us, two people, one matching outfit… and you look stunning in your half of it, I might add.”

 

“As do you,” said Serena, turning in her arms to kiss her. “But let me get this done, so that we can carry on where we left off, as quickly as possible.”

 

Bernie relinquished her hold and stepped back, sitting on one of the stools by the counter as she watched Serena prepare and dish up their basic snack This was something she wanted so much in her life, the simple domesticity that she doesn’t feel she’d ever had for more than a couple of months at a time previously, and certainly not appreciated when she did.

But Serena was an ‘earth mother’ who needed to provide and care for those she loved in the most fundamental way. And all her life, when she’d had the opportunity to do just that she’d taken it with open arms, even though virtually every time those she was trying to show her love for had either upped and left, or had been ripped from her. Yet here she was, still reaching out unconditionally, trusting that this time it would last, this time was the one time when her heart would not be broken. That was why Bernie had told her she would wait for ‘eternity’ because she could never be the one to break that heart.

 

“Come on Berenice, we don’t have time for daydreams…. not today.”

Bernie took the food gratefully and moved to the table next to Serena.

 

“We always should have time for dreams, but right now I do need food, so thank you.”

 

They ate in silence, and when finished Bernie took their plates and put them in the sink, but before she could begin to wash up Serena reached round from behind her and put a hand out to stop her turning on the taps. With her other hand she started to undo the belt holding the robe together and as it fell to the floor she twisted her round so that she could catch a glimpse of her body as the edges parted.

She groaned with desire and pushed Bernie backwards towards the counter, her hands gripping her waist before sliding down over her hips and then back to cup her firm backside.

 

“Don’t think I can wait until I get you upstairs,” she murmured, her mouth resting against the scar at the top of Bernie’s chest. “Can you hop up here?”

And she patted the counter that Bernie was leaning against.

 

Bernie’s eyes widened for a moment, but nodded, mutely, and using a stool for leverage manoeuvred herself up. Serena took a deep breath as the robe parted even more and she reached up to push it off her shoulders, revealing the body she felt she knew almost as well as her own. She stroked her hands down it, pushing Bernie backwards until she had to spread her hands out on the surface to keep her balance. Serena moved forwards and hovered over her breasts placing gentle, wet, open mouthed kisses on them, scarcely touching, which made Bernie arch towards her trying to chase some real contact, increasing the ache between her legs. Serena moved back slightly and shook her head, noting with satisfaction the blush on Bernie’s face and the ragged breathing that indicated how turned on she was becoming. She took a small step back while trailing her fingers down the outside of Bernie’s legs and then pulled a stool behind her and sat down, her hands now holding Bernie’s feet. She looked up enquiringly as she lifted them to rest over her shoulders, checking for any sign of discomfort or pain in her face as she pulled herself and the stool closer, feeling Bernie’s feet slide down her back as her knees moved to rest either side of her head.

 

“Is this okay? Your back is alright?” Serena asked as she breathed in the scent of Bernie’s arousal.

 

Bernie nodded again, her eyes shining as she reached out with one hand to caress Serena’s head, pulling her in towards her core. Serena pressed her lips and kissed her there and was rewarded with a hiss as Bernie said her name.

 

“SssSerena,” followed by a sharp intake of breath as Serena’s tongue pushed between her folds to taste her.

She moved forwards again and was rewarded with Serena’s tongue licking her from her entrance up to her clit, which she sucked briefly into her mouth and then released until just the tip of her tongue was pressed against it. Bernie thought she had never experienced such exquisite agony and tried to force Serena’s head closer again. Serena continued to flick at the bundle of nerves alternating with long slow licks, occasionally pulling completely away if she felt that another touch would tip Bernie over the edge. Bernie was physically struggling to keep her balance now as her head started to swim with her shallow and rapid breathing, and she grabbed Serena’s shoulders as she gave a small sob.

 

“I can’t…. I need to …. get off here …. Serena?”

 

Serena stood up in a trice and gathered Bernie into her arms to help her slide forwards. As her toes reached the floor Serena brought one of her hands down and pushed it between Bernie’s legs, two of her fingers angled towards her vagina, and she whispered into Bernie’s ear to lower herself onto them. Bernie shuddered as she felt them enter her and her head dropped onto Serena’s shoulder, her mouth open against her clavicle and, as Serena slowly started to thrust in and out, Bernie gently nibbled along her collarbone.

 

“More,” she growled, her hands gripping Serena’s waist, and then whimpered as she felt a third finger enter her. Serena had never felt Bernie so wet, and the sounds made from the plunging of her hand in and out, was making her wet too. She increased the rhythm and force curling her fingers as they entered and was rewarded by Bernie groaning loudly as she bit down on her shoulder and then just as suddenly jerking backwards as she climaxed.

Serena moved her gently round to sit on the stool, and cradled her head against her chest. In spite of being virtually naked, Bernie was hot to the touch, and Serena could see little rivulets of sweat running down in between her breasts. She pulled the robe back up over her shoulders and waited a few moments to give Bernie chance to recover. As her breathing normalised Serena encouraged Bernie to come back to the bedroom and they both shrugged off what little clothing they were wearing before sliding into bed, Bernie instinctively curling in towards Serena. A few more minutes passed, and Bernie finally found her voice.

 

“Bloody hell Serena, I’ve not come like that since….. well, since my birthday.” She chuckled and tipped her head back to look at Serena.

“I’d always thought that it would be me, shagging you in the kitchen or ravishing you on the dining room table.”

 

Serena raised an eyebrow.

“What? Didn’t you think I was ‘macho’ enough for that?”

 

She lowered her gaze and kissed Bernie’s head, her hand playing with her hair

“So where else have you imagined us having sex, eh?”

 

Bernie pushed herself up the bed to rest her head on the pillow next to Serena, before answering.

 

“I think that the question ought to be where haven’t I considered making love to you…. but top of my fantasy list is your office on AAU, or possibly the CEO’s office… or both. It was the roof, but I’ve managed to cross that one off .. what about you?”

 

Serena’s eyes danced with delight and she grinned widely.

“Ahh, well, I do have quite a few to be honest. They’re what keeps me ‘entertained’ when I’m missing you.”

 

She looked at Bernie shyly, and Bernie gave a typical smirk before poking her in the stomach, threatening to tickle her if she didn’t tell.

“Okay, okay. Mine seem like the sort of thing a teenager would say, but that’s how you make me feel, slightly crazy and daring. I’ve always wanted to try the back of a car, you know, with the windows getting all steamed up, but these days I worry that we might be mistaken for ‘doggers’.”

 

Bernie snorted with laughter which she quickly stifled as Serena glared at her.

“Sorry, sorry, please, carry on.”

 

“Another teenage fantasy one, but I’d love to sit in the back row of a cinema and have you…. make me come, when I have to be silent."

She paused to collect her thoughts.

"A lot of mine are about being in a public place to be honest.”

 

Serena’s eyes widened as she said this.

“Oh dear god, I’m really quite an exhibitionist aren’t I?”

 

Bernie now roared with laughter, shaking from head to toe.

“And you’ve only just realised it? My god Serena, I knew that about you from the first time I spoke to you.”

 

Bernie managed to bring herself under control, and stroked Serena’s face to try and remove the indignant look she was wearing.

“So, come on, tell me what’s at the top of your list.”

 

“It’s the same as yours actually. My..our, office on AAU. From the first time you kissed me I began to think about that. And I never quite forgave Raf for interrupting us after I kissed you the second time in there. I was certainly about to lunge back at you when he knocked the door, I’d never felt more gutted in my life.”

 

Bernie scoffed.

“Yes, I know, and you buggered off out of there leaving me to try and hold a conversation with him when I scarcely knew which way was up, and my loins were on fire!”

 

They moved towards each other kissing gently, hands entwined. Bernie manoeuvred Serena onto her side, and then spooned her, nuzzling into her neck.

“Sleepy?”

 

Serena mumbled yes, pulling Bernie’s arm around her middle, and before long they were both breathing deeply, relaxed in each other’s embrace. They roused up around midnight and Serena queried whether she should make them something else to eat, but Bernie kissed her deeply and they chose to make sweet tender love instead, both of them knowing that in less than 5 hours Bernie would have to leave.

At around 4.30am Bernie carefully got out of bed, pressing her lips to Serena’s back as she did and then tiptoed across the landing to the bathroom to shower, not wanting to risk waking Serena before it was absolutely necessary, fully aware that saying goodbye again was going to be so hard. She let some tears fall while in there, trying to empty herself before she roused Serena, wanting to be strong so that she could comfort her without falling apart herself. She was back in the bedroom, fully dressed in under 20 minutes, her bag already packed and her taxi due at 5.00 to take her to the airport. She moved across to the window and stared out of it, the horizon just beginning to lighten and then turned to looked at the bed, the pillow still dented from where her head had rested, next to Serena. The urge to climb back in there, to gather Serena in her arms was almost too much to bear, and she drew a ragged breath, desperately trying to calm herself so that she could say her goodbye.

 

“I hope you’re not thinking of sneaking out of the door without so much as a kiss.”

 

Serena turned to face Bernie, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.

 

“Never,” said Bernie, moving to sit on the side of the bed. “I just didn’t know how to wake you without wanting to make love for one more time, so I was leaving it until the last moment.”

 

Serena reached up to push Bernie’s hair behind her ears.

“I’ve been awake for about an hour, but I didn’t say anything when you got up, for the same reason. Thank you for thinking of me by not using the en-suite. Even though it wasn’t necessary.”

 

Bernie sighed.

“I’m sorry.”

 

“Whatever for?”

 

Bernie sighed again, looking up at the ceiling before answering.

“For always leaving you,” she replied, her voice catching.

 

Serena pushed herself up to wrap her arms around her.

“Why do you say that as if I’ve never done the same? Do you not remember my running after Elinor died? And then running back to Holby when they asked?”

 

“But I started it….with bloody Ukraine. I can’t help thinking that if I hadn’t, and we’d had time to really get to know each other and maybe prepare our families before _that_ Christmas then….”

 

Serena pushed Bernie away slightly so she could look her in the eye.

“Berenice Griselda Wolfe, you cannot, you mustn’t, dwell on the things we cannot change. And we had no way of predicting it. The fact that Elinor chose to take drugs means it was always a possibility, an accident waiting to happen. I **do not** , nor will I _ever_ blame you, or our relationship for that.”

 

She kissed Bernie then, long and slow and deep, and when they broke apart she was thankful to see a small smile on Bernie’s face.

 

“I’d better go downstairs to wait for the taxi. It’ll be here in a couple of minutes.”

 

Serena nodded, but held onto her hand, playing with her fingers.

“When I emailed Abigail to tell her that I wouldn’t be in yesterday, I also told her something else.”

 

Bernie looked at her, puzzled, but with a glimmer of hope in her breast.

 

“I told her she needed to find a replacement for me within 3 months, because I was about to tender my resignation…so that I can join you in Nairobi.”

 

“But…but Jason, and Guinevere…”

 

“Are getting along fine, even if they do ring me far more than they need to. They rarely listen to my advice anyway, and I’ve put them in touch with a paediatric agency nurse who will sleep over if necessary and seems to be gelling quite well with them. I won’t, I can’t put this house up for sale…. so I’ll ask Jason and Greta to move in if they want to, or rent it out if not.”

She took a deep breath before continuing. “You do know I won’t want to stay  there forever?”

 

Bernie nodded. “I know,” she whispered.

 

“So how about if we agree that until your initial contract is up, it will be our home. Then, if they still want you, we can discuss it and perhaps agree to have only short term contracts after that so that when we’re ready to move on… we won’t have to wait too long. And we’ll have to sort out some work for me, but that can wait until I get there.”

 

Bernie was overwhelmed. When Serena had started to speak, she’d dared to hope, but to know that she’d been thinking about it so deeply convinced her that she meant what she said. She nodded, not trusting her voice to say anything, but the tears that were falling down her cheeks and the smile on her face told Serena everything she needed to know. They sat there, their foreheads touching until a car horn sounding outside and a simultaneous text message sent to Bernie’s phone startled them out of their thoughts, and Bernie stood up, pulling a naked Serena with her.

 

“I love you,” she murmured.

“I know,” said Serena, “and I love you. Phone me as soon as you get back to your apartment… our home, please?”

 

Bernie kissed Serena passionately and then was gone, running downstairs and out to the taxi before she did something foolish by staying just another few hours, putting her job in Nairobi at risk. But sitting in the back of the car, with a tremulous smile on her face, Bernie finally allowed herself to feel happy.

 

_Postscript :_

_When Serena arrived at work the next day and walked into the office she was surprised to see Ric sitting there. He said nothing, but reached into his pocket and deposited a black lace bra on the desk. Serena tried to act nonchalantly and was about to deny it was hers when Ric spoke._

 

“ _Fletcher said that he’s concerned that he might have to send Mikey for counselling, after this hit him on the head as they were leaving the hospital after your party… after they had left you and Bernie alone up there…”_

 

_Serena felt her face flush and Ric stood up to leave. He turned at the door and winked at her, as she tried to stuff the item into her knitting bag._

 

“ _I think you owe us both a drink at Albie’s tonight..yes?”_

_Serena nodded, wondering how she would ever have the courage to look Fletch and his two eldest children in the eye, ever again._

 

 


	4. Epilogue - A Bridge over Troubled Water

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which our ladies finally make it to Nairobi... together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A very short epilogue to bring the story to it's end. Sorry to make you wait a couple of days for such a short chapter  
> Thank you all for reading it.

Epilogue 

 

 

As they stepped down from the plane at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport the heat hit Serena like a brick wall and she instinctively reached out to take Bernie’s hand. Bernie allowed their hands to brush against each other briefly but she didn’t take hold, simply turned to her and smiled.

 

“I know….. you _will_ adjust to the temperature, I promise you.”

 

Serena smiled in return. It wasn’t as if she had never been before, but not during their summer, and the heat radiating from the floor, buildings and sky was staggering. She looked at Bernie and at their hands and mouthed _Sorry_. She knew she had to be careful, that the next time they could celebrate the fact that they were here, _together_ , would be in the safety of their apartment, and Serena admitted to herself that Bernie had been right… that _was_ difficult.

 

But they had already marked the occasion… sort of. As soon as Bernie knew they were over Africa, she had persuaded Serena to join her in the toilet of the aircraft, where they had joined the exclusive group known as ‘the mile-high club’. It was risky they knew, but had worked out a very plausible story if anyone had seen them entering or leaving there, however discreetly they planned to manage it.

They were doctors after all, and being of a certain age and of the same sex could actually work in their favour. They reasoned that most people’s minds wouldn’t instinctively go to the x-rated version of why they were in the toilet together, at least not amongst the passengers. Serena wasn’t certain that the cabin staff were quite as naïve.

 

Serena grinned at the memory and had been happy to learn that this had been on both of their ‘fantasy locations for having sex.’ They had returned to their seats a minute or two apart, both of them a little breathless and quite flushed, smiling broadly at each other.

As they approached the terminal her eye caught Bernie’s, and she could tell she was thinking of the exact same thing, especially when she winked at her. Serena blushed, thankful that she could blame her red face on the temperature.

It wasn’t long before they were through customs and collecting their baggage. A lot less in the way of suitcases than Bernie had anticipated, knowing Serena’s extensive wardrobe, but as Serena had pointed out, she was going to need to replace most of it over the next few months. She was looking forward to purchasing her new clothes over here revelling in the riot of colour that she had seen in the dress of women when she had visited previously.

Gabriel from the trauma centre was waiting for them in the arrivals lounge and he ushered them out of the door and into his air-conditioned car. It was a relief to be able to sit close together with their hands resting gently together…. something they wouldn’t have considered if they’d taken a taxi.

In just over 30 mins he dropped them at their destination, and being a gentleman he had carried the three suitcases up to their door. He put them down and smiled at them both.

 

“I shall look forward to working with you _both_ very soon,” and taking Serena’s hand and pressing it to his lips he gave a slight nod of the head and went back downstairs.

 

“Oh my,” Serena said, fanning herself with her hand. “That’s quite the charmer you have on your team.”

“Our team,” said Bernie as she unlocked the door.

 

She looked and listened carefully before scooping Serena up in her arms and carrying her inside.

 

“And you need to remember Mrs Serena Wolfe, that you are no longer available to _anyone_ else.”

 

She set Serena down gently, and then returned to the hallway to bring in their cases. Serena had moved into the lounge and was looking out of the window over the gated community that the apartment sat in. It wasn’t cheap to live here, but the government gave Bernie a subsidy towards the rent for bringing her expertise to the country, and both of their wages were very generous, even though Serena would, for the time being, be earning less, as she had decided in the short term to only work 3 days a week. She needed to feel that if she had to return to Holby suddenly, to assist Jason in any way, it wouldn’t cause so much disruption to the work rota.

Bernie walked up to her, and hugged her from behind, so happy to finally be sharing this place with the woman she prized above all others. Serena turned in her arms and they kissed, slowly and gently.

 

“So, Major Wolfe, what say we get this 7 day honeymoon off to a flying start?”

 

“I thought we already did the ‘flying’ part,” teased Bernie, as she took Serena’s hand and pulled her towards their bedroom.

“And at least we know we don’t have to unpack right now. No clothes needed for at least the next 12 hours…”

 


End file.
